Kyle Walker signs with Manchester City

Manchester City have finally announced a transfer that’s been simmering all summer long, first rumored over a month ago and only just now coming to completion. They’ve finally signed now-former Tottenham Hotspur right back Kyle Walker for a reported £50 million, who will give City a much-needed upgrade in the back.

The signing comes a little over a month after Manchester City released a trio of fullbacks, with Pablo Zabaleta, Bacary Sagna, and Gael Clichy each having their contracts terminated in May. Pep Guardiola had hoped to replace them quickly, but things have not gone to plan — as evidenced by Paris Saint-Germain signing Dani Alves despite Pep supposedly making signing him a priority.

Walker, 27, had a much-reported fallout with Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino over the course of the last season, with playing time seemingly at the core of their disagreement. Regularly being dropped for major matches in the spring made Walker decide that his future lay away from the club he found so much success with over the last few years, and now he’s reportedly set to make more than double the reported £3.5 million per season he was making under his most recent contract with Tottenham.

A £50 million fee, plus another £3 million in potential bonuses, is a huge fee for a player like Walker, who by most standards has never quite hit the elite tier. But Manchester City have plenty to spend — they already spent some £43 million to sign Bernardo Silva, a drop in the bucket compared to the rumored £300 million the club has set aside for transfer fees and wages this summer.

It looks like Guardiola’s squad is still in the midst of getting a major turnover this summer — albeit one that’s not happening nearly as fast as Pep wanted.