Haaland, who also made the switch from Borussia Dortmund in the summer, played a key part in Akanji’s decision to swap the Signal Iduna Park for the Etihad Stadium.
The Swiss international has been a mainstay in Pep Guardiola’s side since his move, playing a key part in keeping four clean sheets in his first eight outings for the Blues.
Akanji admits that he had offers from elsewhere in the past but when the chance to join the Premier League champions presented itself, he knew City was the club for him.
“I heard it on the weekend before Deadline Day, Erling [Haaland] texted me so that was the first time that I heard about it,” he said.
“He texted me to say that they [City] had asked him about me, so I was thinking maybe I am in the top five selection of players that they want to get.
“Things progressed with my agent and all of a sudden, on the Monday my agent was in Manchester, the clubs spoke about it and we didn’t have much time because of the deadline on Thursday.
“Inside three or four days I was in signing the contract and it was a nice feeling. I had a couple of other offers before, but I was never really feeling confident with it but as soon as City came, I knew that I wanted to do it.”
Joining a new club is never easy but for Akanji, familiar faces in Haaland and full-back Sergio Gomez has made the move somewhat simpler for the 27-year-old.
And the central defender has paid tribute to his team-mates for helping him settle in Manchester.
“The way I was is the reason that they signed me, they knew that I could fit in that system and my team-mates have made it easy for me on the pitch,” added Akanji.
“They have gave me a lot of solutions, the coaching staff have told me what they expect of me before the game and I try to do that.
“In the games that I have played now, it has really gone well for me, I try to do that everyday in training and that makes it easier for me in a game.”
