Wednesday, 27th August, 2014
Mehdi Benatia admits that Pep Guardiola was the architect behind his move from Roma to Bayern Munich.
After a long-drawn-out transfer saga Roma agreed a fee with the German champions yesterday for the defender, of €26m plus €4m in bonus payments.
“I'm delighted that my transfer to Bayern has finally come off”, the Moroccan told Sport1
Benatia admits that the deal took some time to be sorted out, but Guardiola’s insistence on having him at the Allianz Arena played a key role in the 27-year-old moving to Germany.
“It dragged out a bit and there were times when I thought it might fall through. But Guardiola desperately wanted me and I'm really looking forward to working with him.
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“He's a fantastic coach.”
The Moroccan international is excited at the prospect of playing at Bayern Munich and said that the move is a dream come true for him.
“Bayern have so many great players. They have such a strong squad and it's a dream to be part of it.”
The central defender is expected to travel to Germany later this week and undergo a medical before signing a five-year contract with the Bavarians.
Benatia joined the Giallorossi from Udinese last summer and made 37 appearances for the club last season.
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