Man City finalise deal for Bundesliga defender

Manchester City will be hoping to pick up their first piece of silverware of the new season when they face Arsenal in the Community Shield on Sunday. 

The game at Wembley traditionally pits the winners of the Premier League against the FA Cup holders but, as the Citizens lifted both trophies last term, league runners-up Arsenal face Pep Guardiola’s side.

The City boss will be without Ilkay Gundogan following the German’s move to Barcelona, but the Spaniard could hand a competitive debut to new midfielder Mateo Kovacic, who joined from rivals Chelsea earlier this summer.

In the meantime, it appears that City have finalised another huge signing.

According to Fabrizio Romano, City have finalised a deal for RB Leipzig defender Josko Gvardiol.

The centre-back is regarded as one of the best in the world in his position, and the Citizens appear to have beaten a number of other teams to the player’s signature.

Gvardiol is expected to finalise a move to Manchester City in the coming days

Romano claims that the Premier League side will pay a fixed fee of around £77.5 million to land the Croatian defender, who is set to travel to Manchester and undergo a medical on Friday.

Gvardiol, 21, is said to have agreed personal terms with City back in June and will now officially sign for his new side, Romano claims.

The Croat, who played a crucial role for his country as they finished third at the World Cup last year, joined Leipzig from Dinamo Zagreb back in 2021 and has since been in fine form for the Bundesliga outfit.

In total he has made 87 appearances for his current side across all competitions, but it appears that he is now set to depart for The Etihad.

The defender – who has won the German cup twice – will add even more depth to Guardiola’s always talented backline.

Gvardiol will be competing with John Stones, Ruben Dias, Aymeric Laporte, Nathan Ake and Manuel Akanji for a place in City’s starting line up.