Bayern Munich will sign defender Benjamin Pavard from fellow German club Stuttgart in July.
The 22-year-old France international will sign a five-year deal with the Bundesliga champions.
“We’re delighted and proud to be able to secure the services of a player like him,” said Bayern sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic.
?️ @Brazzo: “I can confirm that Benjamin Pavard will join us on a five-year deal from 1st July 2019.” pic.twitter.com/jiJo1E4wsG
— FC Bayern English (@FCBayernEN) January 9, 2019
Pavard made headlines for his brilliant performances as France won the World Cup , with his unbelievable goal against Argentina in the round of 16 victory quite rightly seeing him win the goal of the tournament.
The Stuttgart defender was fairly unknown going into the tournament but some people were aware of him because of the outrageous assist he conjured up in October 2016 when playing in the second tier of German football.
Don’t let the brilliance of Kylian Mbappe distract you from the fact that Benjamin Pavard did THIS… #FRAARG #worldcup #bbcworldcup pic.twitter.com/bOMOHfva19
— Match of the Day (@BBCMOTD) June 30, 2018
Receiving the ball in his own half just two minutes into the game, Pavard cuts the Greuther Furth defence in half with one glorious pass straight through the lines and in the path for his striker to slot home.
While Bayern had likely been monitoring progress at Stuttgart (they do love to sign other German team’s best player after all), his excellent World Cup campaign ultimately convinced them to snap him up.
And When France hosted Euro 2016, the 22-year old was watching all the action unfold in a fan park in Lille with his mates and he then went on to establish himself as first-choice right-back under Didier Deschamps in Russia two years later.
His move to Bayern had been on the cards for a while but it could well be yet another tidy bit of business for them.