Top 5 surprise signings of the summer in Ligue 1 🥷

A wind of comebacks is blowing (strongly) over Ligue 1.

On Friday, Florian Thauvin followed in the footsteps of Paul Pogba and Olivier Giroud by signing his return to France, after four years in exile.

While we wait to see what the final sprint of the summer transfer window has in store, let’s zoom in on the five most unexpected signings in Ligue 1 so far.

After an unsuccessful stint with Tigres (Mexico) and a fruitful spell at Udinese (Serie A), “Flotov” is coming home to discover his fifth French club. At 32, is the 2018 World Cup champion secretly dreaming of a return to the French national team? Dare to dream.

Against all odds, the Gabonese arrow terminated his lucrative contract in Saudi Arabia (Al-Qadsiah) to facilitate his express return to Olympique de Marseille. This financial sacrifice did not go unnoticed among the Olympian faithful, who were already won over after his memorable stint in 2023-24. A repeat in 2025-26?

For once, a star of the French national team will make his Ligue 1 debut at the age of 32. After shuttling between Juventus and Man United since turning pro, “La Pioche” will try to recapture his former glory at Monaco.

Two big questions remain: his real fitness after two years of inactivity, and how well he’ll gel with Monaco’s current midfielders.

Look, another member of the OM family! Rongier to Rennes: this is probably the most controversial transfer of the summer in Ligue 1.

His status as former talismanic captain of FC Nantes (a regional rival) and his harsh comments about SRFC did not sit well with the Rennes Ultras at the time of his signing.

Despite statements and protest tweets from supporters, Rennes still completed the transfer. Against all odds.

Anssumane Fati in Ligue 1, who would’ve thought? Given his salary at Barcelona, one could doubt whether any Ligue 1 club (except PSG) could convince Fati financially.

Without overthinking it, Monaco found the right formula to sign both Fati and Pogba, without blowing up their wage structure. Hats off, Thiago Scuro!

Honorable mentions: Oliver Giroud (LAFC-Lille), Eric Dier (Bayern-ASM), Otávio (Porto-Paris FC), Saul Abdulhamid (Roma-Lens), and Youssef El-Arabi (free agent-Nantes).

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇫🇷 here.