Premier League champions almost ready to confirm centre back.
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Manchester City are set to follow up today’s capture of young midfielder Bruno Zuculini by announcing the long-awaited signing of centre back Eliaquim Mangala from FC Porto in the near future, according to reports this evening from the Daily Mail.
City have long been linked with a £32m move for the French international, and it now looks as though Manuel Pellegrini’s men are getting ready to confirm the deal, which is likely to see Mangala installed as the permanent partner for captain Vincent Kompany in the centre of defence.
The Frenchman, who played for Standard Liege before moving to Portugal, was in Didier Deschamps’ France squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, but struggled to break into the team ahead of the likes of Liverpool’s Mamadou Sakho.
He is, however, rated as one of the best emerging centre backs on the planet, and could be the long-term future of the City defence with his powerful and commanding displays that have made him one of the best players to have been unearthed by Porto in recent years.
£32m would, however, be a huge outlay on a relatively unproven player, and could be the biggest test of manager Manuel Pellegrini’s credentials in the transfer market so far.