Sofiane Boufal joins Southampton for club-record fee of £16 million

Morocco’s Sofiane Boufal has signed with Southampton in a record signing deal of £16 million from French side Lille. The Lille winger signed a five-year deal with Southampton.

Addressing the media on his arrival to Southampton, Boufal stated: [perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“I’m very, very happy to sign for Southampton and I am really excited to play in St Mary’s Stadium in front of the fans. Southampton showed big interest in signing me, and I can see that this club is the best place for me to continue my progression as a footballer . I hope I can achieve many great things with Southampton. It is a very good club, with excellent facilities, and I feel it is the perfect environment to continue my development.”[/perfectpullquote]

According to report in the Daily Mail, the executive director of football Les Reed expressed his delight in the 22-year-old signing with Southampton Football Club saying: “He has shown his undoubted qualities in France over the past few seasons, and we are extremely confident he will successfully adapt to life in the Premier League. Sofiane is a player we have watched develop closely over the last few years, and we’re thrilled to have him join the club ahead of what promises to be a very exciting season, with Europa League football on the horizon. ”

The 22-year-old had a successful season with league 1 side Lille and was pursued by top clubs in the premier league including the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool.

#SaintsFC is delighted to announce the signing of Sofiane Boufal on a five-year contract! 😇 #SaintSofiane https://t.co/mhg9L1sXWL

— Southampton FC (@SouthamptonFC) August 29, 2016

A video highlight of Sofiane Boufal’s best moments:

Featured Photo: Courtesy of PA Images