Germany winger Leroy Sane has signed a five-year deal for Manchester City, both the Premier League side and his now former Bundesliga club Schalke 04 confirmed yesterday.
 City tweeted a picture of Sane signing a contract, which is reportedly worth £37mn (43mn euros), plus add-ons, after he completed the medical examination in Manchester on Monday.
 The 20-year-old said the prospect of playing under new City boss Pep Guardiola had helped persuade him to move to Eastlands.
 “One of the reasons I decided to join City was Pep Guardiola; he convinced me to come here and that I can continue to progress,” Sane told City’s website. “I know I will learn a lot under him and now I can take the next step in my career.
 “I followed Pep at Barcelona and at Bayern where he achieved a lot and worked really well with young players. I think he can make me a more complete player. I think I will need a bit of time to start with because it’s another league and there’s a different style of play but I think I can adapt very quickly.”
 If the £37mn fee is confirmed, it will make Sane the most expensive German signing of all time.
 “We have given the green light for the transfer. Those in charge of Manchester City behaved professionally at all times. There were difficult, but fair discussions,” said Schalke’s director of sport Christian Heidel.
 Sane is a rising star in the Germany squad and has already posed for pictures with City fans in Manchester. The reported transfer figure seems astronomical given that Sane has made just 47 Bundesliga appearances, scoring 11 goals and creating seven more, since his debut in Germany’s top flight in April 2014.
 The fleet-footed forward made the last of his four international appearances for the world champions as a late replacement in last month’s 2-0 defeat to hosts France in the Euro 2016 semi-finals.
 Guardiola is confident his new recruit, who scored eight goals in 33 Bundesliga games last season, is tailor-made for the unique demands of the Premier League.
 “He is a special talent, and an exciting player that I think our supporters will enjoy watching,” Guardiola said. “He has great technical ability, is comfortable on the ball and there is much to admire about the way he plays football.
 “He is fast, enjoys creating chances for others, works hard for the team and scores goals, too. He also has a very positive attitude and will fit in well with our squad.
 “At 20, he is still developing as a player but he is already a member of the German national side and I think he will be a fantastic asset to
our club.”
 Sane’s arrival in Manchester continues former Bayern Munich boss Guardiola’s rebuilding of the City squad following the signings of Nolito, Ilkay Gundogan and Oleksandr Zinchenko.

EPL clubs’ transfer spending nears £500mn
Premier League clubs have already splashed out £475 mn ($631 mn, 562 mn euros) since the transfer window reopened in July, according to business analysts Deloitte.
 Bolstered by the increased revenue from the Premier League’s new £5.1 bn television deals, the 20 top-flight teams have been throwing money at a host of new signings and Deloitte say the spending could shatter the £1 bn mark for the first time in the pre-season window.
 The current figure of £475 mn is slightly less than the £515 mn spent by Premier League teams at the same stage in 2015, which led to an eventual £870 mn outlay in the whole window.
 Leroy Sane’s £37 mn move to Manchester City is not included in the figures as it was only confirmed yesterday.
 And the spending figure would rise significantly if Manchester United complete their reported world record £100 mn move for Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba. Chelsea, linked with a £65 mn deal for Everton striker Romelu Lukaku, could also add to the rising transfer total.
 “The prospect of increased revenue from the new broadcast deals next season has encouraged Premier League clubs to invest in this window in order to be as competitive as possible,” Alex Thorpe, senior manager in the sports business group at Deloitte, told the BBC.
 “With a month of the window still to go, some significant deals in the pipeline and a number of clubs yet to enter the market, we may see another summer of record Premier League spending, possibly breaking the £1bn barrier for the first time.”

Most expensive German transfers
1. Leroy Sane from Schalke 04 to Manchester City in August 2016 for 43 mn euros, plus add-ons which are expected to take figure to 55 mn.
2. Mesut Ozil from Real
Madrid to Arsenal in Sept 2013 for 47 mn euros.
3. Mats Hummels from Borussia Dortmund to Bayern Munich in July 2016 for 38 mn euros.
4. Mario Goetze from Borussia Dortmund to Bayern Munich in July 2013 for 37 mn euros.
5. Julian Draxler from Schalke 04 to VfL Wolfsburg in August 2015 for 35 mn..
6. Mario Gomez from VfB Stuttgart to Bayern Munich in July 2009 for 35 mn euros.
7. Andre Schuerrle from VfL
Wolfsburg to Dortmund in July 2016 for 32 mn euros.
8. Ilkay Gundogan from Borussia Dortmund to Manchester City in July 2016 for 30 mn euros.
9. Toni Kroos from Bayern Munich to Real Madrid in July 2014 for 30 mn euros.
10. Manuel Neuer from Schalke 04 to Bayern
Munich in 2011 for 22 mn euros.