Manchester City Sign Geronimo Rulli for £1.7m

Manchester City have turned to a familiar face to bolster their goalkeeping ranks, sealing a £1.7m move for Argentina international Geronimo Rulli from Marseille.

The 34-year-old returns to Etihad Stadium on a two-year contract, eight seasons after his first spell at the club passed almost unnoticed. Registered by City during the 2016-17 campaign, he never made a first-team appearance before moving on. This time, he arrives with a heavyweight CV and the scars – and medals – of elite competition.

Rulli is no ordinary back-up. His name is etched into European final folklore after Villarreal’s dramatic Europa League triumph over Manchester United in 2021. On that night in Gdańsk, the goalkeeper stepped up in the shootout, buried his own penalty, then denied David de Gea to settle a marathon contest and deliver Villarreal’s first major European trophy.

Since then, his reputation has grown on the international stage. Rulli has earned eight caps for Argentina and was part of the squads that lifted both the 2022 World Cup and the 2024 Copa America, training and competing in one of the most intense goalkeeping environments in world football.

His club journey has been equally varied. From Real Sociedad in La Liga to spells at Montpellier and Ajax, and most recently Marseille, he has lived most of his career on the European circuit, adapting to different leagues, languages and tactical demands.

City now tap into that experience at a bargain price. A goalkeeper who once decided a European final returns to Manchester with unfinished business, this time not as a prospect, but as a proven winner walking back through the Etihad doors.