Nathan Benjamin Aké

Nathan Benjamin Aké is a Netherlands international centre-back born in Den Haag on 18 February 1995. He developed at VV Wilhelmus, ADO Den Haag and Feyenoord before joining Chelsea in 2011 at 16, where he won the club’s Young Player of the Year award in 2013 and captained the under-21s to a Premier League title in 2014. Loans at Reading and Watford broadened his experience, with Watford using him at left-back and naming him its Young Player of the Year. After a successful loan, Aké moved permanently to Bournemouth in 2017 and became a central defensive figure. Manchester City signed him in August 2020, where his ability to play centrally or at left-back suited Pep Guardiola’s flexible defensive structures. Aké started the 2023 Champions League final as City defeated Inter Milan, completing a continental treble. He has also represented the Netherlands at international level.