Manchester City have finalized a transfer with Valencia worth £34 million for Nicolas Otamendi.

Manuel Pellegrini said: “Nicolás Otamendi was arguably the best defender in La Liga last season and so naturally I’m delighted to have added a player of his quality. He is an established international for one of the best nations in world football and I have no doubt that he has the right mentality to fit into a squad where he will find many familiar faces, including Eliaquim [Mangala] and Fernando who he played alongside in Portugal.

“As a footballer, Nicolás has all of the qualities to be a success in the Premier League – he’s strong, he’s excellent in the tackle and he’s very good technically.”

Otamendi will challenge Mangala and Martin Demichelis to partner in City's central defense with Vincent Kompany.