Flop list · #1

Renato Sanches: the story of the deal

European champion at 18, best young player at the Euros, and barely a Bayern player two years later.

By MiaSanMia Editorial · Last updated

Accuracy note. Figures on this page are documented facts, current to the end of the 2024-25 season. Transfer fees are reported figures: German clubs rarely confirm them officially.

From
Benfica
Year
2016
Reported fee
Reported around €35m
Rank
#1

Sanches arrived days after being named best young player at Euro 2016, which Portugal won. Bayern beat several English clubs to the signature and paid a large fee for a teenager with one senior season behind him.

He played very little under Carlo Ancelotti, was loaned to Swansea in 2017-18 where things went worse, and was sold to Lille in 2019 for a fraction of the fee. He later rebuilt his career in France and won a Ligue 1 title.

Why it did not work: this is a fit-and-timing story rather than a talent story. A physical, ball-carrying midfielder needed minutes and a settled coach; Bayern were mid-transition and had neither to offer.

On the fee

The figure above is a reported fee. Bayern, like most German clubs, do not confirm transfer amounts, so contemporary press reporting is the best available record and add-ons are rarely disclosed. Where a fee is disputed, this site says "reported around" rather than quoting a false precision.