Athletic Bilbao have almost doubled the salary of Aymeric Laporte and made the young defender the heart of their project to convince the Frenchman to shun interest from Manchester City.
The 22-year-old defender was heavily linked with a move to Manchester City for months before he decided to sign a new contract with Athletic Bilbao earlier in the summer.
It has been claimed that the Frenchman came close to agreeing personal terms with the Premier League giants, and Pep Guardiola was keen on signing him during the transfer window.
However, according to French sports daily L’Equipe, the Spanish club managed to title the scales towards them after talks with the defender and his advisers about his future.
Laporte was on a basic contract of around €2.5m per season, but his new deal is seeing him earn a salary of around €4.5m per year, and it could rise to €5m based on annual premiums.
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The Athletic Bilbao hierarchy also convinced the young defender that he is the heart of their future project, and Laporte also opted for the stability that the club have been providing him, rather than moving to a new league and new country.
The defender also wants to continue developing in the more familiar environment of the San Mames, before he decides to join a big club in the future.
His current contract has a release clause of €65m and it will rise to €70m after two more seasons.
