City sign Kevin De Bruyne for £54.5m

Midfielder joins from Wolfsburg on a six year deal

Manchester City yesterday confirmed the signing of midfielder Kevin De Bruyne from Wolfsburg, for a club record £54.5m. The Belgian midfielder has signed a six year contract at The Etihad, and the transfer takes City's summer spend to over £140m.

De Bruyne, who is 24, excelled in the Bundesliga for Wolfsburg last season after joining from Chelsea for £18m in January 2014. He scored 16 goals and notched an incredible 27 assists in 51 appearances, and was named Bundesliga Player of the Year by Kicker magazine.

Wolfsburg, who are backed by the financial might of Volkswagen, were under no pressure to sell and had been confident De Bruyne would extend his contract. However, the lure of playing for City and competing for both the Premier League and the Champions League proved too much for De Bruyne. He joins fellow Belgians Vincent Kompany and Jason Denayer at the club, although Denayer is expected to join Galatasaray on a one-year loan deal later today.

De Bruyne said: "I want to reach the highest level possible as a player and I think the most important thing is that at the end of the season we can be happy and maybe have some titles.

"I think this is the most important for the club, the players and for the fans of course."

Manager Manuel Pellegrini said: "We are very happy to have added Kevin to our team and I have no doubt that he will be a big success on his return to the Premier League.

"It takes a special footballer to improve our squad and I have no doubt that Kevin is certainly one of those – he has all of the mental, physical, tactical and technical attributes required to fit straight in.

"We like to play attractive, attacking football and bringing in a player like De Bruyne will only aid us as we fight on four fronts."