Manuel Akanji | City close to £15m agreement, 5 year contract

[Cotton Weave Blue]

Is this guy any good? Did he play against us in the CL?

 

[Blue Smarties]

Bit out of the blue, but we definitely need greater squad depth. Just hope the injuries to Laporte and Ake aren't worse than first feared.

Met Laporte in town on Saturday. He said he’s back next week. Then again, it was a big group of us so he probably would have said anything to get us to leave him alone!

 

[ayrshire_blue]

Sounds class on Wikipedia (I know)

"Akanji was widely criticised for his costly errors during Dortmund's failed challenge to Bayern during the 2019/20 season. Akanji was one of the main players singled out as a weak link in the team."

 

[kupest]

3 at the back formation?

 

[Alan Harper's Tash]

I can only think maybe Laporte's injury is worse than expected, or Aké is about to drop a transfer request bombshell because the last month being 1st choice has made him realise he's too good to be 4th choice.

We have 4 incredibly good leftbacks and a big prospect in Mbete who Pep likes and has used.

We have loads of Lb cover between Cancelo, Gomez, Aké and JWE.

Akanji isn't likely to play RB.

Wasn’t the last update on Laporte that he’s out until October? Maybe he may well not play before the WC.

For £20m another body can’t hurt us anyway, if the player is willing to rotate and not play as much as they’d ideally like.

 

[dhruvblue]

Dortmund fans are actually happy that he is off

 

[Alan Harper's Tash]

Sounds class on Wikipedia (I know)

"Akanji was widely criticised for his costly errors during Dortmund's failed challenge to Bayern during the 2019/20 season. Akanji was one of the main players singled out as a weak link in the team."

Hopefully that’s not a Haaland quote!

 

[Mancini’s Pastilles]

Is this guy any good? Did he play against us in the CL?

Mainstay in the Swiss team and dortmund team, can't be too bad let's hope he's awesome

 

[dadnlad]

does anyone know the agents fees or do i need to wait for Kaveh on the transfer show

 

[Mancini’s Pastilles]

Dortmund fans are actually happy that he is off

I remember some benfica fans delighted with the Ruben deal too

 

[Hamann Pineapple]

Leicester wanted him to replace Fofana

 

[Barcon]

Hadn’t heard of him myself but found this interesting little article.

Bundesliga | Manuel Akanji: Who is the Borussia Dortmund and Switzerland defender hailed by Giorgio Chiellini?

Borussia Dortmund's Manuel Akanji has the brawn and the brains to thrive at the very highest level for years to come - and that's just the opinion of legendary Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini. bundesliga.com profiles a centre-back with some very impressive career numbers...

amp.bundesliga.com

If there's any truth to this, I'll take two.

"Akanji likes to carry out his defensive duties at centre-back, but, comfortable playing with either foot, has also been successfully deployed on the right and left. Standing at 6'1" and weighing 85 kilograms, he also boasts impressive speed.

His specialty, however, is bringing the ball out from the back, be it via well-timed runs or long, accurate passing in a manner not too dissimilar to retired Anderlecht, Hamburg, Manchester City and Belgium defender, Vincent Kompany".

 

[bumbleblue]

Sorry about the image quality it’s says he plays like Vinnie.

 

[domalino]

I remember some benfica fans delighted with the Ruben deal too

No you don't, he was their homegrown local captain, they were devastated.

 

[ayrshire_blue]

Hopefully that’s not a Haaland quote!

More promising from whoscored.com...

Manuel Akanji Characteristics​

+ Strengths​

Passing
Very Strong
Ball interception
Strong
Concentration
Strong

- Weaknesses​

(Player has no significant weaknesses)

Manuel Akanji's Style of Play​

Likes to play short passes

 

[MCFC1993]

Smart from City, buttering Dortmund up for Bellingham next year.

 

[balotelli's back pocket]

Completely out of the blue.

Has struggled the last couple of years, but there's a player there. Worth a pop at that price.

 

[Alan Harper's Tash]

does anyone know the agents fees or do i need to wait for Kaveh on the transfer show

For the whole package, we’re looking at £275-£300m.

 

[kippaxwarrior]

does anyone know the agents fees or do i need to wait for Kaveh on the transfer show

"Man. City. Are. Getting. A. £18M. Player. For. Err.(checks phone). £18M'

 

[skillman]

Weren't we linked with him years ago? Another one of those we've gone back for after missing out.

Think it'll be a very, very shrewd signing personally.