adminMANCHESTER City have completed the signing of Bacary Sagna on a three-year contract.
The former Arsenal defender, who arrived on a free transfer, has become the Premier League champions’ first summer signing.City fought off competition from Inter Milan and Napoli to secure the signature of the 31-year-old, who is currently in France’s World Cup squad.
They confirmed Sagna will take up the vacant squad number 3, the same number he wore for the Gunners.
Sagna was offered a two-year extension to his deal at Arsenal but rejected it in favour of a longer and more lucrative deal with City.
He becomes the fifth player to move directly from the Emirates to the Etihad Stadium in recent seasons, following Emmanuel Adebayor, Kolo Toure, Gael Clichy and Samir Nasri, and will provide competition for first-choice right-back Pablo Zabaleta.
The former Auxerre defender can also plays as a centre-back and left-back but his signing is likely to mean City sell their longest-serving player, right-back Micah Richards.
Sagna, who scored five goals in 284 games during his seven seasons at Arsenal, could make his City debut against his former club in August’s Community Shield.
He posted an emotional farewell to Arsenal on his Instagram site this week, writing: “I just wanna thank the whole Arsenal FC . . .. a family to me, a club who taught me so much in 7 years, a club where I had the chance to progress day by day, a club who always gave me his trust whenever I was personally not at my best, a club who change the kid I was to the man I am today, a club where I had the pleasure to give 200 percent every game.
“I wanna thank the whole staff working at the club, the fans for accepting me so fast, my team-mates which I consider my true friends today and I had a great pleasure learning with them.
“Of course I wanna thank the coach MR WENGER . . . who believed in me, gave me his trust and clearly changed my life. Now, it’s time for me to move on and one more time THANK YOU.” — espnfc.com.
Online Reporter