Orlando City SC acquires defender Lamine Sané from German Bundesliga side SV Werder Bremen, pending receipt of his P-1 Visa and International Transfer Certificate (ITC).
“Lamine will significantly strengthen our back line,” General Manager Niki Budalic said. “He brings tremendous experience at the highest levels of European football and we believe he will fit right in with what we’re trying to build in Orlando.”
Sané, 30, joins the Lions after registering over 270 appearances in European top-flight leagues. The center back, who can also play as a holding midfielder, spent the past two seasons with Werder Bremen. Sané made 38 Bundesliga appearances in 2016-17 and 2017-18, scoring two goals and one assist. Sané also made two appearances in the German Cup, DFB-Pokal, in 2016 and 2017.
Prior to joining Werder Bremen, Sané played seven seasons for FC Girondins Bordeaux, making 188 appearances in the French Ligue 1 between 2009 and 2016. Sané also made six appearances in the 2009-10 UEFA Champions League and 17 appearances in the UEFA Europa League between 2009 and 2016. Sané also made 14 appearances in the Coupe the France, including five key appearances to help Bordeaux conquer the 2012/13 French cup.
Sané, who was born in Villenueve-sur-Lot, France, has 25 senior caps for the Senegal national team, including five between the 2012 and 2015 African Cup of Nations and two in the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. Senegal is one of the five nations from the Confederation of African Football (CAF) that will compete in the 2018 FIFA World Cup.