Bayern sign Cancelo on loan from Manchester City

Bayern Munich have signed Portuguese full-back Joao Cancelo on loan from Manchester City until the end of the season, the German club confirmed on Tuesday.

Bayern have the option to buy the Portuguese defender at the end of the season for a reported 70 million euros ($75 million).

Cancelo, who scored seven times in 41 appearances for Portugal, arrived in Munich on Monday and completed a medical on Tuesday for a move that could see the end of France international Benjamin Pavard’s time at Bayern.

The 28-year-old Portuguese defender came over from Juventus for 65 million euros in 2019 and has a contract with the English champion until 2027.

“FC Bayern is a great club, one of the best in the world, and it is a huge motivation for me to now play in a team with these extraordinary players,” Cancelo said in a statement from the club on Tuesday.

“I know that this club, this team lives for titles and wins titles every year. I am also driven by the hunger for success.”

Cancelo has won multiple titles during his career, including league titles with Benfica, Juventus and Man City.

Bayern’s sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic said the club had been “thinking about (Cancelo) for a while” before making the move.

“He fits perfectly into our system with his attacking style of play and dynamics, and his mentality and experience fit very well into our team.

“I am convinced that Joao will help us in the coming weeks and months where we want to win titles.”

Bayern secured the signing on deadline after Cancelo, who had been named in the Premier League Team of the Year for the past two seasons, fell out of Man City’s first team in recent weeks.

Manager Pep Guardiola has left Cancelo out of the starting line-up in each of the team’s last three games, with academy graduate Rico Lewis, alongside Nathan Ake, Kyle Walker and John Stones all favoring Cancelo.

Cancelo could make his Bayern debut in the club’s German Cup tie against Mainz on Wednesday, or in their Bundesliga away draw against Wolfsburg on Sunday.

AFP