Laporte : I turned down Man City

Athletic Bilbao defender Aymeric Laporte has revealed that he snubbed a move to Manchester City despite being in constant contact with manager Pep Guardiola.

The 22-year-old had been strongly tipped to join the Citizens over the summer before he put pen-to-paper on a fresh four-year contract.

While speaking to RTL, Laporte confirmed that he had known Guardiola for a long time but he preferred to remain at the Basque outfit, where he would be guaranteed regular playing time.

Laporte broke into the Bilbao first-team in 2012, and has since appeared in over 150 outings in all competitions.

The centre-half had considered switching his alliance to Spain before he earned his maiden call-up with France for the World Cup qualifiers against Bulgaria and the Netherlands this month.

His current deal will last until the summer of 2020 with a release clause rising above £52m.