Gvardiol signs five-year deal to commit future to Manchester City despite Real Madrid interest

Josko Gvardiol is set to sign a new five-year contract with Manchester City, ending a period of uncertainty over the Croatian defender’s future at the Etihad Stadium.

Real Madrid and Bayern Munich had both been linked with the 24-year-old, but Gvardiol has committed to City as the club begins reshaping its defence for the post-Pep Guardiola era. Real Madrid are instead understood to be pursuing Marc Cucurella from Chelsea and Ibrahima Konaté from Liverpool, while Bayern are expected to sign left-back Nathaniel Brown from Eintracht Frankfurt.

Gvardiol remains the most expensive defender in City’s history, having joined from RB Leipzig for £77m in 2023. He has scored 13 goals in 122 appearances for the club and won their player-of-the-year award for the 2024-25 season.

His campaign was disrupted, however, by a broken leg that ruled him out for much of the second half of the season. In his absence, Marc Guehi and Abdukodir Khusanov established themselves as the first-choice centre-back pairing, while Nico O’Reilly impressed at left-back.

Gvardiol’s renewal arrives at a moment of significant transition at the Etihad. John Stones is leaving on a free transfer when his contract expires, and Nathan Aké is also reported to be a potential departure. The new deal signals that Gvardiol, despite his injury setback, remains central to City’s defensive plans under whoever succeeds Guardiola.