Manchester City have signed the German forward Leroy Sané for £37m (€43m) on a five-year contract.
“One of the reasons I decided to join City was Pep Guardiola,” Sané told City’s website. “He convinced me to come here and that I can continue to progress. I know I will learn a lot under him and now I can take the next step in my career.
“I followed Pep at Barcelona and at Bayern where he achieved a lot and worked really well with young players. I think he can make me a more complete player. I think I will need a bit of time to start with because it’s another league and there’s a different style of play but I think I can adapt very quickly.”
The Manchester City manager, Pep Guardiola, had confirmed last month that the club were in talks with the forward but said the transfer was being held up over the player’s valuation.
“He is a special talent, and an exciting player that I think our supporters will enjoy watching.,” Guardiola said after the signing was confirmed.
“He has great technical ability, is comfortable on the ball and there is much to admire about the way he plays football. He is fast, enjoys creating chances for others, works hard for the team and scores goals, too. He also has a very positive attitude and will fit in well with our squad.
“At 20, he is still developing as a player but he is already a member of the German national side and I think he will be a fantastic asset to our Club. We are very happy he decided to join us.”
Sané, who has been on City’s radar since 2013, made his debut for Germany against France last year and was in the squad for Euro 2016 though he played only 11 minutes, against France in the semi-final, which his side lost 2-0.
He could make his debut for against Arsenal in a pre-season friendly in Gothenburg on Sunday.
City have so far signed Ilkay Gündogan from Borussia Dortmund, Nolito from Celta Vigo and Oleksandr Zinchenko from the Ukrainian club FC Ufa this summer.
City retain an interest in John Stones but are reluctant to meet Everton’s £50m valuation for the central defender, setting their target figure at around £40m plus potential add-ons.
Meanwhile Chelsea defender Baba Rahman has completed his switch to Schalke on a season-long loan.
The 22-year-old Ghanaian is heading back to the Bundesliga having signed for Chelsea from Augsburg a year ago.
Last season Rahman made 23 appearances for the Blues but remained second-choice left-back behind Cesar Azpilicueta.
New Chelsea boss Antonio Conte has allowed Rahman to link up with his former Augsberg manager Markus Weinzierl, who took charge of Schalke earlier this summer.
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