After four years in the wilderness at Barcelona, Samuel Umtiti finally made his way out of Catalonia and moved on loan to Lecce.
The Blaugrana were keen to find him an exit this summer and there was interest from Stade Rennais in Ligue 1, but the deal fell through.
Rennes manager Bruno Genesio is the same who gave Umtiti his debut at Lyon originally. Speaking to Mundo Deportivo, Genesio admitted that he wanted to reunite with the World Cup winner.
“I was seduced by the idea of returning him to his best physical condition, but Rennes had doubts.”
“He is a boy that I know well, there is no reason to think that he cannot return to the top level. I know that he has consulted some specialists.”
It is a question that has hung over Umtiti’s head ever since his knee injury in 2018 and a succession of four Barcelona managers have not trusted him.
While it may be merely that he is working his way back to full fitness, it is somewhat telling that Umtiti is yet to appear for Lecce since arriving in the five matches he has been available. There had been hopes that he could recover both his level and his reputation at Lecce, but there has been little sign of it so far.
