LONDON (Reuters) - Manchester City have completed the signing of Portsmouth striker Benjani Mwaruwari for 3.87 million pounds, the Premier League club said on Tuesday.

The Zimbabwe striker passed a medical on Monday and has signed a 2-1/2-year contract.

City failed to clinch the signing of Benjani on transfer deadline day last Thursday when Portsmouth spent around nine million pounds on Tottenham Hotspur striker Jermain Defoe.

However, the Premier League have approved the deal which will rise to around seven million pounds if Benjani, Portsmouth's top scorer this season, starts 75 matches for City.

"I would like to thank Portsmouth Football Club, the Premier League and the Football Association for their help, understanding and assistance in enabling this transfer to be completed to the satisfaction of all concerned," City's chief executive Alistair Mackintosh told the club's Web site (www.mcfc.co.uk).

Benjani could make his debut for City against champions Manchester United at Old Trafford on Sunday.

"I am delighted that we have signed such a quality player, and I am looking forward to working with him straight away," City manager Sven-Goran Eriksson said.

(Reporting by Martyn Herman; Editing by John Mehaffey)