Ligue 1 summer 2021 transfer window: Live updates

With both Euro and Copa America becoming history, football clubs have once again started to attract the attention of football enthusiasts with their preseason friendlies and most importantly, their transfer policies. Clubs have started their shopping spree and Ligue 1 fans are awaiting to see who else will be arriving the next few weeks. the 

Ligue 1 summer 2021 transfer window

is already one of the hottest topics of discussion around the world with so many world-class footballers having joined the French league.

Surely Paris Saint-Germain will be determined to spend a lot more money wherever their manager feels the need as they could not afford not winning the league. PSG had been the dominant force in Ligue 1 for so many years that no one thought another club could ever win the French league. But Lille managed to prove everyone wrong as they made history by finishing on top of PSG and winning their fifth Ligue 1 title.

Are you excited to know more about the

Ligue 1 transfers 21/22

? Then read on as we provide you with all the details you might need about both the arrivals and the departures.

French Ligue 1 transfers – 2021/2022

From Sergio Ramos, Gianluigi Donnarumma, Achraf Hakimi and Gini Wijnaldum joining PSG, to Gerson joining Olympique Marseille and Loic Bade joining Stade Rennais, there has been quite a number of exciting arrivals this summer. Here is everything you need to know about the

Ligue 1 summer 2021 transfer window

.

LOSC Lille

Many will be expecting to see the reigning champions of France boost their strength for the new season.

managed to make history by becoming the Ligue 1 champions instead of PSG, who had been dominating their domestic league with the resources they had. But Les Dogues proved everyone that money is not everything in football.

The

Ligue 1 summer 2021 transfer window

could be a special one for Lille if they make the right calls and bring in the right players. But the French side have mostly been selling to balance their books first. Players like Boubakary Soumare, Mike Maignan and Adama Soumaoro have already left for Leicester City, AC Milan and Bologna respectively.

While Lille have had a slow start to this season’s summer transfer window, they are slowly starting to invest in young blood as they aim to add more prospects to their squad, which is why they have since signed 19-year-old defensive midfielder Amadou Onana from Hamburger SV for €7 million and have also added 22-year-old left-back Gabriel Gudmundsson to their squad for €6 million.

Of course it seems that Lille players are slowly leaving the reigning champions as some of their talented players have already left for teams in Europe’s top-five leagues. Boubakary Soumare has joined Leicester City for €20 million and the likes have Mike Maignan, Luiz Araujo, Rominigue Kouame, Adama Soumauro and Jean Onana have earned Lille more than €25 million in total.

Arrivals:

Adama Soumaoro, Cheikh Niasse, Adam Jakubech, Leo Jardim, Show, Angel Gomes, Saad Agouzoul, Jean Onana, Amadou Onana, Gabriel Gudmundsson, Ivo Grbic

Departures:

Boubakary Soumare (Leicester City), Mike Maignan (AC Milan), Adama Soumaoro (Bologna), Rominigue Kouame (Troyes), Herve Koffi (RSC Charleroi), Abou Ouattara (Valenciennes)

PSG

are angry and they have the right to feel so. They have been spending hundreds of millions of Euros in the past couple of years so that they can finally get their hands on the Champions League. But last season went worse than they expected as they not only lost their chance of winning the UCL, but they also lost the one trophy that they were always guaranteed of winning. PSG let the Ligue 1 title slip from their fingers as Lille took the chance to snatch the trophy from under PSG’s noses.

Now the Parisians are readying themselves to show their rage with the superstars that they have brought in so far. They have already signed the like of

legend Sergio Ramos, AC Milan and Italy hero Gianluigi Donnarumma, Inter Milan’s impressive right-back Achraf Hakimi and Liverpool’s Gini Wijnaldum. Combined with the players PSG already have, this side will surely be fun to watch this season. Surely their

Ligue 1 transfer news

will keep on getting better and better.

Who would have even imagined that we were one day going to see Lionel Messi leave Barcelona to join Sergio Ramos and play alongside the Spaniard at PSG? Well, what seemed to be a ridiculous “conspiracy theory” a couple of years ago, is now a reality as both players were unveiled at Parc de Princes alongside the club’s other new signings. There is no denying that the Parisians may have had the most successful and historic transfer window of all time, having signed the best of the best to add to their already star studded squad.

Arrivals:

Achraf Hakimi, Danilo Pereira, Gianluigi Donnarumma, Sergio Ramos, Gini Wijnaldum, Alphonse Areola, Lionel Messi

Departures:

Mitchel Bakker (B. Leverkusen), Kays Ruiz Atil (free transfer), Alphonse Areola (West Ham-loan), Timothee Pembele (Bordeaux-loan), Thierno Balde (La Havre-loan), Marcin Bulka (OGC Nice-loan), Moise Kean (Everton-end of loan), Alessandro Florenzi (AS Roma-end of loan)

AS Monaco

have almost always been one of the top contenders in the French league and last season was no exception. They finished third only behind Lille and PSG with a couple of point’s difference. The Ligue 1 summer 2021 transfer window has not been an active one for Monaco so far, as more players have left the club than join them. With Ismail Jakobs joining Monaco from FC Koln for €6.5 million, the French side have made a profit with the sale of Benjamin Henrichs to RB Leipzig for €15 million.

Arrivals:

Ismail Jakobs, Alexander Nubel, Arthur Zagre, Henry Onyekuru, Strahinja Biancone, Antonio Barreca, Jorge, Keita Balde, Jean-Eudes Aholou, Adrien Bongiovanni, Jean Lucas, Myron Boadu

Departures:

Benjamin Henrichs (RB Leipzig), Fode Ballo Toure (AC Milan), Gil Dias (Benfica), Jorge (Palmeiras), Henry Onyekuru (Olympiacos), Guilian Biancone (Troyes), Enzo Millot (VfB Stuttgart), Stevan Jovetic (Hertha BSC), Jean-Eudes Aholou (R. Strasbourg-loan), Arthur Zagre (FC Utrecht-loan), Loic Badiashile (released), Youssef Ait Bennnasser (released), Adrien Bongiovanni (released), Florentino (Benfica-end of loan)

Lyon

also managed to finish amongst the top-five last season amongst likes of Lille, PSG and Monaco. Certainly they will now be more determined to try their chance at winning the league themselves after seeing how Lille made history last campaign. According to the Ligue 1 transfer news, Olympique Lyon have signed Damien da Silva and Henrique on free transfer and have opted to bring in more youth players instead. 20-year-old Melvin Bard has also joined OGC Nice for €3 million.

Perhaps Lyon’s best move of the season so far was signing the hugely underrated Xherdan Shaqiri, who did not receive the respect that he deserved at Liverpool. The Ligue 1 side have just paid €6 million for the 29-year-old winger, whose actual market value is estimated to be more than double his transfer fee. Shaqiri is immensely versatile and could help Lyon in a multitude of areas on the pitch. Of course Shaqiri is the only non-free player that they have signed in the summer so far.

Arrivals:

Damien da Silva, Henrique, Youssouf Kone, Moussa Dembele, Jean Lucas, Joachim Andersen, Lenny Pintor, Xherdan Shaqiri

Departures:

Melvin Bard (OGC Nice), Memphis Depay Barcelona), Djamel Eddine Benlamri (Qatar SC), Joachim Andersen (Crystal Palace), Jean Lucas (Monaco), Maxwel Cornet (Burnley), Yahya Soumare (Dijon-loan), Youssouf Kone (Troyes-loan)

Marseille

Despite finishing fifth last season,

have been one of the more active clubs in the Ligue 1 summer 2021 transfer window. They have already spent more than €44 million to bring in the likes of Gerson from Flamengo, Leonardo Balerdi from Borussia Dortmund, Luan Peres from Santos FC and Konrad de la Fuente from Barcelona’s reserves side. They have also signed AS Roma duo Pau Lopez and Cengiz Under on loan for the whole season.

Arrivals:

Gerson, Leonardo Balerdi, Luan Peres, Konrad de la Fuente, Pau Lopez, Cengiz Under, William Saliba, Kevin Strootman, Maxime Lopez, Mohamed Abdallah

Departures:

Maxime Lopez (Sassulo), Hiroki Sakai (Urawa Reds), Christopher Rocchia (Dijon), Florian Abdallah (Stade-Lausanne), Kevin Strootman (Cagliari-loan), Lucas Perrin (R. Strasbourg-loan), Ahmadou Dia (released), Yuto Nagatomo (released), Yohann Pele (released), Valere Germain (released), Leonardo Balerdi (Borussia Dortmund-end of loan), Olivier Ntcham (Celtic-end of loan), Pol Lirola (Fiorentina-end of loan), Michael Cuisance (Bayern Munich-end of loan)

Stade Rennais

Rennes came just behind Marseille and lost out on a place in the Europa League after finishing sixth in Ligue 1 last season. But the hope that they too could achieve something more than ever before has driven Rennes to splash the cash and sign Loic Bade, Kamaldeen Sulemana and Birger Meling for a total of €35 million.

There seems to be nothing that can stop Stade Rennais in the current transfer window as they are still going strong and spending millions on signing new players. Having sold their wonderkid Eduardo Camavinga to Spanish giants Real Madrid for a bargain fee of €31 million, Rennais have now got the funds to spend serious money on bringing in more and more players, which is exactly what they have done so far.

Since the very first weeks of the transfer window, Rennais have added Gaetan Laborde, Baptiste Santamaria, Lovro Majer and Dogan Alemdar to their already packed roster. Surely Bruno Genesio is hoping to have an impressive squad depth for the 2021-22 season. Of course we are yet to see these players in action and the club’s supporters are going to need at least a couple of months before deciding if these signings have been successful.

Arrivals:

Loic Bade, Kamaldeen Sulemana, Metehan Guclu, Jeremy Gelin, Rafik Guitane, Birger Meling, Gaetan Laborde, Baptiste Santamaria, Lovro Majer, Dogan Alemdar

Departures:

Jordan Siebatcheu (BSC YB), Lilian Brassier (Brest), Sacha Boey (Galatasaray), Damien Da Silva (Olympique Lyon), Franck Rivollier (Stade Briochin-loan), Yann Gboho (Vitesse-loan), Hakim El Mokeddem (released), Clement Grenier (released), Steven Nzonzi (AS Roma-end of loan), Dalbert (Inter-end of loan), Eduardo Camavinga (Real Madrid), Faitout Maouassa (Club Brugge)

RC Lens

manager Franck Haise has been one of the more active ones in the Ligue 1 summer 2021 transfer window with several new signings already appearing in his roster. Having earned their place in Ligue 1 after a promotion from Ligue 2 in the 2019-20 season, Lens proved they had come to stay with a brilliant performance which saw them finish seventh above Montpellier and Nice.

The campaign was especially noteworthy since it was only their second time ever playing in Ligue 1. Lens have already spent more than €8 million, bringing in the likes of Gael Kakuta, Deiver Machado and Wuilker Farinez.

Arrivals:

Gael Kakuta, Deiver Machado, Wuilker Fainez, Wesley Said, Christopher Wooh, Valentino Lesieur, Mamadou Camara, Charles Boli, Jules Keita, Kevin Danso

Departures:

Loic Bade (Rennes), Thomas Vincensini (Bastia), Cheick Traore (Dijon), Boubakar Camara (Le Mans FC-loan), Clement Michelin (AEK Athens), Tony Mauricio (FC Sochaux), Valentin Belon (released), Zakaria Diallo (released), Arnaud Kalimuendo (PSG-end of loan), Gael Kakuta (Amiens SC-end of loan), Issiaga Sylla (Toulouse-end of loan), Wuilker Farinez (Millonarios-end of loan)

Montpellier

Montpellier seem to be one of the those clubs who are content with where they stand in the league, so far as they don’t get relegated and no one gets to take their place. That is why the club have shown little to no activity when it comes to French Ligue 1 transfers – 2021/2022. They have finished eighth on the table for two consecutive seasons and seem to be planning on staying right where they were, with their departures outnumbering their arrivals.

With Leo Leroy joining Montpellier on a free transfer, the French side have only had to pay a small fee to bring in Thuler on loan from Flamengo.

Having sold Gaetan Laborde to Stade Rennai for reportedly €15 million and having let go of Andy Delort for €10 million, Montpellier have now made a profit of more than €24 million during the summer transfer window. We will have to wait and see how Michel Der Zakarian is going to cope with the departure of two of his center-forwards.

Arrivals:

Thuller, Leo Leroy, Bastian Badu, Mamadou Sakho

Departures:

Kylian Kaiboue (Bastia), Samy Benchamma (Niort), Daniel Congre (Dijon), Keagan Dolly (Kaizer Chiefs), Il-lok Yun (Ulsan Hyundai), Damien Le Tallec (AEK Athens), Bastian Badu (Le Mans FC), Clement Vidal (AC Ajaccio-loan), Hilton (retired), Yanis Ammour (released), Gaetan Laborde (Stade Rennais), Andy Delort (OGC Nice)

OGC Nice

did not get to live up to the expectations that many had of them last season, with the French club finishing behind even the likes of Montpellier. Having finished ninth in the last campaign, the Ligue 1 summer 2021 transfer window is the right time for Nice to lick their wounds and come back stronger with a new and improved squad.

They have already signed Calvin Stengs from Alkmaar for €15 million, Jean-Clair Todibo from Barcelona for €8.5 million and Mario Lemina from Southampton for €5.5 million. Adding Melvin Bard to their roster, Nice have been quite active with their French Ligue 1 transfers – 2021/2022.

Arrivals:

Calvin Stengs, Jean-Clair Todibo, Mario Lemina, Melvin Bard, Justin Kluivert (loan), Marcin Bulka (loan), Pablo Rosario, Andy Delort

Departures:

Wylan Cyprien (Parma), Stanley Nsoki (Brugge), Pierre Lees Melou, Racine Coly (Estoril Praia), Ibrahim Cisse (Le Mans FC-loan), Hicham Mahou (Lausanne Sport), Armel Zohouri (Lausanne Sport), Trazie Thomas (Lausanne Sport), Andy Pelmard (FC Basel-loan), Jean N-Guessan (Lausanne Sport-loan), Yoan Cardinale (released), William Saliba (Arsenal-end of loan), Jeff Reine-Adelaide (Olympique Lyon-end of loan), Rony Lopes (Sevilla-end of loan)

FC Metz

Metz have been one of the less active clubs in the Ligue 1 summer 2021 transfer window with two free transfers coming in from AS Nancy and nimes Olympique. They have also let go of Victorien Angban for €4.1 million. Considering the fact that Metz managed to finish the 2020-21 campaign in a much better position, it seems that Frederic Antonetti is content with his squad and the way things have been going.

Arrivals:

Amine Bassi, Sofiane Alakouch, Lenny Joseph

Departures:

Victorien Angban (Sochi), Mathieu Cachbach (RFC Seraing-loan), Amadou Ndiaye (Le Mans FC-loan), Thierry Ambrose (KV Oostende), Mamadou Fofana (Amiens SC), Youssef Maziz (RFC Seaing-loan), John Boye (released), Ernest Boahene (released), Aaron Leya Iseka (Toulouse-end of loan)

Saint-Etienne

Perhaps fewer clubs could be in a worse shape than Sain-Etienne. The Greens have dropped drastically in the league table since the 2018-19 season, seeing a six-level drop in the 2020-21 campaign. But despite their less than satisfactory performance in the last two seasons, they have been rather inactive in the Ligue 1 summer 2021 transfer window. So far, the only arrivals at the club are those returning from loan spells.

Arrivals:

Alexandro Katranis

Departures:

Jessy Moulin (Troyes), Mathieu Debuchy (released), Kevin Monnet-Paquet (released), Rayan Souici (released), Panagiotis Restos (Bayer Leverkusen-end of loan), Pape Abou Cisse (Olympiacos-end of loan), Anthony Modeste (FC Koln-end of loan)

Bordeaux

According to the latest confirmed news on Ligue 1 summer 2021 transfer window, Bordeaux goalkeeper Over Mandanda has left the Ligue 1 club to join AS Saint-Priest on a free transfer, with 28-year-old right-back Youssouf Sabaly following in his teammate’s footsteps to leave for Real Betis on a free transfer as well. Bordeaux have been finishing 12th on the league table for two consecutive seasons and might be looking for a similar finish this campaign as well.

Arrivals:

Issouf Sissokho, Malcom Bokele Mputu, Raoul Bellanova, Timothee Pembele (PSG-loan), Gideon Mensah (RB Salzburg-loan), Ricardo Mangas (Boavista-loan), Fransergio, Stian Gregersen, Jean Onana

Departures:

Over Mandanda (AS Saint-Priest), Youssouf Sabaly (Real Betis), Alexandre Lauray (Le Mans FC), Thomas Carrique (Celta Vigo B), Hatem Ben Arfa (released), Nicolas de Preville (released), Maxime Pounje (released), Vukasin Jovanovic (released), Jean Michael Seri (Fulham-end of loan), Yacine Adli (AC Milan), Toma Basic (Lazio)

SCO Angers

Angers have already started their preseason campaign with a couple of strong and decisive wins against Troyes and Chateauroux and a 2-0 defeat against Sporting CP. It seems that they are aiming for a higher finish this time around as Lille seem to have inspired the whole of Ligue 1 to push for a better finish in the 2021-22 season. While Angers have signed Batista Mendy and Azzedine Ounahi, their most famous transfer so far has been the sale of Rayan Ait Nouri to Wolverhampton Wanderers. The 20-year-old left-back has joined the Premier League side for €11 million.

Arrivals:

Batista Mendy, Azzedine Ounahi, Casimir Ninga

Departures:

Rayan Ait Nouri (Wolves), Ludovic Butelle (Red Star FC), Lois Diony (Red Star-loan), Lassana Coulibaly (Salernitana), Thomas Toure (released), Ibrahim Amadou (Sevilla-end of loan), Yassin Fortune (FC Sion-end of loan)

Stade Reims

were only two points away from relegation last season as they barely escaped relegation to Ligue 1 with the single win that they got in their last five league games. However, it seems that the French club need to make a bit of profit and gain a bit of breathing room before continuing their Ligue 1 campaign, which is why they have had to sell their 24-year-old center forward Boulaye Dia to Villarreal for €12 million.

Having improved their financial situation with the sale of Boulaye Dia to Villarreal, Reims have now spent a total of €6 million to bring in Azor Matusiwa and Mitchell van Bergen from FC Groningen and Heerenveen respectively. Both are young and promising, which is why it might turn out to be a good investment on Stade Reims’ side. Of course both the defensive midfielder and the right-winger will have to prove their worth or risk being sent out on loan for the next few seasons.

Arrivals:

Nicolas Penneteau, Andreaw Gravillon, Azor Matusiwa, Mitchell van Bergen

Departures:

Boulaye Dia (Villarreal), Nicolas Lemaitre (Q. Rouen)

Strasbourg

Just like Stade Reims,

were on the verge of relegation as they narrowly saved their skin last time around. That is why they have been strengthening their squad while also being wise with their money. They have signed 34-year-old former Valencia center forward Kevin Gameiro on a free transfer deal, adding to their squad the likes of Karol Fila for €1.5 million and Lucas Perrin and Jean Aholou on loan. The Racers have also managed to make a profit with the sale of Mohamed Simakan to RB Leipzig for €15 million.

Arrivals:

Karol Fila, Kevin Gameiro, Lucas Perrin, Jean-Eudes Aholou

Departures:

Mohamed Simakan (RB Leipzig), Stefan Mitrovic (Getafe), Idriss Saadi (Bastia), Lionel Carole (Kayserispor), Ismael Aaneba (FC Sochaux)

Lorient

Despite surviving the Ligue 1 last time around, Lorient have been letting go of so many players this season. It seems as if they might be planning a sort of squad overhaul in the near future, or it might even be for balancing the books. This will be Lorient’s fifth season playing in the French top flight and they might have to strengthen their squad if they want to stand a chance against the clubs who have been newly promoted to Ligue 1.

Arrivals

: Igor Silva

Departures:

Sylvain Marveaux (Charlotte Ind.), Maxime Pattier (Stade Briochin), Franklin Wadja (SM Caen), Julien Ponceau (Nimes Olympique), Umut Bozok (Kasimpasa), Tiago Ilori (Sporting CP), Andreaw Gravillon (Inter)

Brest

This will be Brest’s third season in Ligue 1 and so far they have managed to hold themselves just above the relegation zone to survive. They will have to do just that once again this season with their new signings. They have already brought in defenders Lilian Brassier and Jere Uronen for a combined transfer fee of €3 million, while also signing goalkeeper Gregoire Coudert on a free transfer deal.

Arrivals:

Lilian Brassier, Jere Uronen, Gregoire Coudert, Marco Bizot, Romain Del Castillo

Departures:

Romain Perraud (Southampton), Heriberto Tavares (Famalicao), Ferris N’Goma (Chateauroux), Mouez Hassen (released), Ludovic Baal (released), Guillaume Buon (released), Jean Lucas (Lyon), Lilian Brassier (Stade Rennai)

Nantes

Perhaps

would like to escape the horrors of the previous campaign and try not to repeat the same results this time around. They nearly avoided relegation after only surviving in the play-offs. That is why they have gone on to sign a young and talented goalkeeper named Alban Lafont from Fiorentina for €7.5 million. Of course they have also had to sell the likes of Imran Louza and Lucas Evangelista to finance this purchase.

Arrivals:

Alban Lafont, Remy Descamps, Wylan Cyprien

Departures:

Imran Louza (Watford), Lucas Evangelista (RB Bragantino), Elie Youan (St. Gallen), Batista Mendy (SCO Angers), Thomas Basila (KV Oostende), Alexandre Olliero (Pau FC), Anthony Walongwa (released), Alban Lafont (Fiorentina)

Troyes

Having earned a promotion to the top-flight of French football, Troyes will be doubly determined to cement their position in Ligue 1 and stay for at least a couple of seasons. With this goal in mind, Laurent Batlles has been aiming for a squad overhaul with several arrivals and departures in the summer transfer window. They have spent more than €11 million on new signings, with midfielders Metinho and Renaud Ripart coming in for a total transfer fee of €8 million.

Arrivals:

Metinho, Renaud Ripart, Rominigue Kouame, Mykola Kukharevych, Issa Kabore, Nassim Chadli, Jessy Moulin

Departures:

Maxime Barthelme (Guingamp), Stone Mambo (US Orlean), Mahamadou Dembele (Pau FC), Rominigue Kouame (LOSC Lille), Lenny Pintor (Lyon), Alimami Gory (Cercle Brugge), Umut Bozok (FC Lorient)

Clermont Foot

Ligue 1 debutants Clermont Foot are surely buzzing right now as this will be their very first time playing in Ligue 1 amongst the greatest football clubs in France and some of the most well-known clubs in the world. The Lancers are definitely the underdogs this season and are staggeringly underfunded, which is why they are bound to face quite a lot of problems in the top flight of the French league.

Of course the underdogs always find a way to surprise us. We will have to wait and see how Clermont Foot are going to line up this season, with 28-year-old left-winger Elbassan Rashani and 19-year-old central midfielder Cem Turkmen having signed for the newly-promoted club.

Arrivals:

Elbasan Rashani, Cem Turkmen, Arial Mendy, Salis Abdul Samed

Departures:

Baila Diallo (US Orleans), Till Cissokho (Rouen), David Gomis (Pau FC), Muamer Aljic (Louhans-Cuiseaux), Lorenzo Rajot (Rodez AF), Sofyan Chader (Stade Lausanne), Cem Turkmen (Lustenau), Muhammed-Cham Sracevic (Lustenau), Salis Abdul Samed (JMG Abidjan)

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