Monday, 8th July, 2013
Lyon have signed Sporting Lisbon defender Miguel Lopes on a season-long loan deal whilst retaining the option of buying him at the end of the spell.
Lopes is contracted with Sporting until 2018, having joined them from FC Porto last year, while he has also previously played for Rio Ave and La Liga side Real Betis.
The 26-year-old, who has four senior caps for Portugal, will undergo a medical at Lyon and then work out personal terms with the Ligue 1 club before the move is made certain.
A statement on Lyon’s official site read: "Olympique Lyonnais is very pleased to report the arrival of the Portuguese international defender Miguel Lopes, who played for Sporting Lisbon.
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"Negotiations were particularly complicated, especially as Porto always had an interest in the player.
"Miguel Lopes is an athletic player who plays primarily on the right side of defence but whose versatility allows him to play on the left as well."
Sporting are currently in a financial crisis of sorts, and had earlier been linked with a sale for Lopes to try and keep their books balanced.
It appears they are slowly moving towards the same, and will be hoping Lyon make good on their option of giving Lopes a full-time contract next summer.
Lyon are themselves facing uncertainty in the transfer market over the future of players such as Clement Grenier and Maxime Gonalons, alongside that of out-of-favour striker Bafetimbi Gomis.
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