After a slight wobble in negotiations a couple of weeks ago, Manchester City finally got the Josko Gvardiol deal done with RB Leipzig and had the player sign his contract on Saturday morning.
There aren’t too many players in world football that can improve upon what Pep Guardiola already has in situ, but the Croatian brick wall would be regarded by many as one of them.
Joško Gvardiol ?? Manchester City. pic.twitter.com/aYAH4Dqnlo
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 5, 2023
Just 21 years of age, Gvardiol has years left in the game, injuries permitting, and City are likely to see the best years of his career.
As BBC Sport report, he has signed a five-year deal with the Cityzens and at €90m/£77m, he becomes the second most expensive defender of all time behind Harry Maguire (£80m from Leicester to Man United).
Journalist, Fabrizio Romano, tweeted a picture of the player holding up his shirt, which identified his squad number as 24.
Joško Gvardiol: “I have always dreamed of one day playing in England… this is an incredible day for me”. ?? #MCFC
“Anyone who saw Manchester City play last season knows they are the best team in the world”. pic.twitter.com/X9xd8kbFZg
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 5, 2023
He’s sure to provide excellent competition at the back alongside the likes of Ruben Dias and Nathan Ake, and will arguably give Guardiola the headache that all coaches profess to want to have.
Strength in depth is what will win teams titles in 2023/24, and there can’t be any arguing with City’s hire of a player that was coveted across Europe.
It will be interesting to see if Pep puts him straight into the City XI for the first game of the new season, or wants to watch him in training for a few sessions before throwing him in at the deep end.
As reigning treble winners there aren’t going to be any easy games for the club, so perhaps the sooner that Gvardiol can get his debut out of the way, the better.