Bayer Leverkusen signs Dragovic from Dynamo Kyiv

One of European football's most hard-nosed centre-backs is heading to the BayArena.

On Tuesday, Bayer Leverkusen signed Aleksandar Dragovic from Dynamo Kyiv, as the Austrian defender agreed to a five-year contract through June 30, 2021.

Dragovic, 25, won two Ukrainian Premier League titles at Dynamo, and, prior to that, helped FC Basel to three Swiss Super League crowns. He reportedly came close to joining Manchester United a few years ago and was rumoured to replace Mats Hummels at Borussia Dortmund.

"Kyiv was the right and important club for me but now I'm attracted to the Bundesliga as one of the best leagues in the world," Dragovic said. "It's fantastic that I've been able to join Bayer 04 as one of the top clubs in Germany and a Champions League side as well as playing alongside my international teammates Julian Baumgartlinger and Ramazan Ozcan."

At Euro 2016, Dragovic made two appearances for Austria as Marcel Koller's side was knocked out of the tournament in the group stage.