Top 5 surprise signings of the summer in Ligue 1 🥷 | OneFootball

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

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

While waiting to see what the final sprint of the summer transfer window holds for us, let's focus on the five most unexpected signings in L1 so far.

Florian Thauvin (Udinese-Lens)

After an unsuccessful stint with the Tigres (Mexico) and a fruitful period at Udinese (Serie A), "Flotov" returns home to discover his fifth French club. At 32, does the 2018 World Champion secretly dream of a return to the French national team? The dream is allowed.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Al-Qadsiah-OM)

Against all odds, the Gabonese arrow terminated his lucrative contract in Saudi Arabia (Al-Qadsiah) to facilitate his quick return to Olympique de Marseille.

This financial sacrifice does not go unnoticed by an Olympian fanbase already won over by his cause, after his memorable stint in 2023-24. Repeat performance in 2025-26?

Paul Pogba (free-ASM)

For once, a star of the French national team will make his debut in Ligue 1 at the age of 32. After going back and forth between Juventus and Man United since his professional debut, "La Pioche" will attempt to regain his former glory in Monaco.

Two major questions remain: his actual fitness after two years of inactivity and his compatibility with the existing Monaco midfielders.

Valentin Rongier (OM-Rennes)

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

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

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

Ansu Fati (Barcelona-ASM)

Anssumane Fati in Ligue 1, who would have thought? Given his earnings at Barcelona, one could doubt the ability of an L1 club (except PSG) to convince Fati financially.

Without overthinking, Monaco found the right formula to enlist Fati and Pogba without blowing up its salary scale. Hats off, Thiago Scuro!

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

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