French defender Samuel Umtiti joins Lille on a free transfer after mutually terminating his contract with Barcelona. Umtiti will sign a two-year deal with the Ligue 1 club.
The 29-year-old will make his long-awaited return to France, seven years after leaving Lyon in 2016 for Barcelona. The defender also won the World Cup in 2018 with France.
After suffering from several injuries, Umtiti joined Italian side Leece last summer on loan, where he featured in 25 games for them.
In 2018, when Umtiti was playing for Barcelona, he suffered a serious knee injury before the World Cup. Moreover, when doctors told him to undergo surgery, he opted for conservative treatment in Qatar in order to play the World Cup in 2018.
However, this decision backfired him, and his career took a U-turn since then.
Samuel Umtiti’s statements after singing for Lille
The World Cup winner said: “Returning to France, logically I thought of Lyon but in the end I chose to go to a club that wanted me. I had a full season last year, even though I started playing in December.”
“I really want to be successful with Lille, if I am, other things will come with it, I don’t worry about that.
“I have already tasted the France team, experienced exceptional moments, obviously these are things that I want to relive.”
“I know their qualities, I saw that this team lacked a bit of experience at times, but I will not be able to do everything alone.”
Samuel Umtiti joins Lille to revive his career
The former Lyon defender will replace departing defender Jose Fonte, who left for Sporting Braga. Big Sam is Lille’s third signing of the summer after Hakon Haraldsson and Tiago Santos.
Despite several injuries in the past, Umtiti said he was “feeling good physically” and ready to play for Lille, who finished fifth in Ligue 1 last season.
Cameroon-born Umtiti was the hero of France’s 2018 World Cup, scoring the only goal against Belgium in the semi-final, and remains hopeful for a return to the national side.
