PSG announce arrival of Sanches

Coach Galtier hopes to make more signings in transfer window after landing Portuguese midfielder

PARIS:

Paris Saint-Germain's new coach Christophe Galtier on Thursday signed Portugal midfielder Renato Sanches and said he hoped to make three further signings before the end of the transfer window.

Galtier, appointed last month to replace Mauricio Pochettino, has seen the Ligue 1 champions already bring in another Portuguese international Vitinha, French defender Nordi Mukiele and young striker Hugo Ekitike.

The latest new face at the Parc de Princes, Sanches, is reunited with Galtier having worked with him at Lille. The 24-year-old Euro 2016 winner has signed a deal extending to 2027, PSG announced in a statement.

After struggling to live up to his 35 million euros ($35.8m) price tag at Bayern Munich and after a loan spell at English Championship side Swansea City the player who started off his playing career at Benfica in his native Lisbon moved to Lille in 2019 to reignite his career.

And the move paid off handsomely as Sanches helped the northern French side claim an unexpected Ligue 1 title at the chief expense of his new club in 2021.

Galthier and the club's fans will be hoping his precision passing will serve well PSG's fearsome forward triumvirate of Kylian Mbappe, Lionel Messi and Neymar.

Lille bade farewell to their star player, saying they had been "happy to have helped his development and the progress of his career".

Ahead of PSG's first game of the new league season away to Clermont on Saturday, Galtier called for further reinforcements before the end of August.

"I want a certain number of players in my squad, players who are very similar in level, to perform well throughout the season and to create healthy competition," he said at a news conference.

"But are these three players going to arrive quickly, later or not at all? I don't know. I know the club is doing all it can to have a very competitive squad."