Manchester City defender Nicolas Otamendi has signed a contract extension with the Premier League leaders.
The Argentina international moved to the Etihad from Valencia in 2015 for £28.5 million on a five-year-deal, and has gone on to make 115 appearances for the club.
Despite the 29-year-old centre-back not always being a big favourite with Premier League pundits, his manager Pep Guardiola rates him very highly, and recently hailed him as one of his record-breaking sides key performers when he said:
“Without Nico it would not have been possible what we have done,”
“Everybody has spoken about a lot of players like Raheem, Kevin, Sergio [Aguero], they deserve it, but if I can point some attention to a player who deserves the respect is Nico.”
“He has been amazing – he is one of the hugest competitors I have ever seen in my life.
“I cannot imagine the situation we are in at the moment in terms of the table without him. It would have been impossible.”
Due to the superb nature of Otamendi’s performances this season, the club have now moved to tie him down with an extended contract that will run until 2022.
City are also in discussions with star midfielder Kevin De Bruyne and coach Pep Guardiola to extend their current deals, and hope to build a squad that can continue to dominate the Premier League for years to come.