Image source: theguardian.com
Marc Guéhi has completed a £20m transfer from Crystal Palace to Manchester City, with the England defender signing a contract that runs to 2031. City moved for the 25-year-old with three centre-backs injured, while Palace manager Oliver Glasner criticised the club’s board for approving the sale. Chelsea will receive 20% of the fee.
Marc Guéhi completes £20m Crystal Palace move and signs City deal to 2031
Marc Guéhi has finalised his move from Crystal Palace to Manchester City in a £20m deal. The England international has signed a contract through to 2031 after choosing City despite other offers. The transfer was agreed on Friday, and Guéhi was left out of Palace’s weekend match at Sunderland so he could complete the move.
Guéhi described the transfer as a landmark moment in his career. “This move feels like the culmination of all the hard work I have put into my career,” he said. “I am now at the best club in England and part of an unbelievable squad of players.” City recruited the 25-year-old during a spell when Rúben Dias, Josko Gvardiol and John Stones are all injured.
Palace manager Oliver Glasner criticised the club’s board after the defeat at Sunderland, saying the squad had been stretched. “We feel that we’re being abandoned,” Glasner said. “There’s no support. Everybody’s disappointed. We’ve been playing with 12 to 13 players for weeks now. On the bench I had just kids.”
The report said Guéhi had been close to joining Liverpool last summer before Palace ended the deal, and that the Premier League champions did not renew their interest in January because they “saw no value” in a mid-season move for a player whose contract was due to expire in the summer. Guéhi’s former club Chelsea will be entitled to 20% of any fee as part of the agreement that took him to Palace in 2021.
Guéhi becomes City’s second signing of the window, following Antoine Semenyo’s arrival from Bournemouth for an initial £62.5m. City had also recalled academy graduate Max Alleyne from a loan at Watford a fortnight ago to provide cover while injuries have affected their central defensive options.
