Manchester City are on the ‘verge’ of completing a move to sign RB Leipzig defender Josko Gvardiol after reaching an agreement with the Bundesliga side.
Gvardiol has been the leading transfer target for the Premier League champions as Pep Guardiola looks to strengthen his backline this summer and City have been in negotiations over a fee with Leipzig.
Fabrizio Romano is reporting that City have now reached an agreement with Leipzig and Gvardiol is expected to complete his medical tests on Thursday ahead of an announcement.
The 21-year-old is understood to have agreed personal terms with the Citizens and is set to become the club’s second signing of the summer, after the arrival of compatriot Mateo Kovacic from Chelsea.
The final fee is undisclosed, but it is expected that Gvardiol will become the world’s most expensive defender when completing a move to the Etihad, surpassing the £80m figure that took Harry Maguire to Manchester United from Leicester in 2019.
Gvardiol has forged a reputation as one of Europe’s best young defenders and impressed as Croatia reached the World Cup semi-finals in Qatar last winter.
The arrival of the left-sided centre-back could pave the way for Aymeric Laporte to depart in search of regular first-team football, with the Spaniard having been linked with a return to former club Athletic Bilbao.
