Official: United sign Marcos Rojo from Sporting Lisbon

Manchester United is delighted to announce the signing of defender Marcos Rojo from Sporting Lisbon for a fee of €20m, with Nani joining the Portuguese club on a season-long loan. Marcos joins on a five-year contract.

Rojo, 24, joined Sporting from Spartak Moscow, having started his career at his home town team of Estudiantes de la Plata. Marcos has played 28 times for Argentina since making his debut three years ago and played six games, including the final, in his country's run to the recent FIFA World Cup final, scoring in the last group game against Nigeria. He was named as one of the defenders in the Castrol Index All Star Team of the tournament.

Marcos Rojo said: "It is such an honour to say that I now play for Manchester United. The Premier League is the most exciting league in the world and to have the chance to play in it for the world's biggest club is a dream for me. I am young and am very keen to continue to learn the game, so playing for such an experienced technical coach as Louis van Gaal is a fantastic opportunity for me. I have joined United to work hard with my team-mates to win trophies and I know that the manager shares that ambition."

Louis van Gaal said: "Marcos is a very gifted defender. He has played at the highest level in world football and can play either as a central defender or left-back. He has ability, physical strength and a willingness to learn that means he has a very bright future ahead of him. He had a very strong World Cup and has been playing in Europe for a couple of years now. He is a very good addition to the team."