“The best left back in the Swiss Championship”, who is Ulysses Garcia, the surprise signing of OM

At OM, the complete overhaul of the left defense corridor should begin with the surprise arrival of Ulises Garcia, a file that the Olympian leaders have been working on in secret for several days. The 28-year-old Swiss international has strong experience as a Young Boys Burn player, particularly in Europe.

The first matches of 2024 were unlikely to bring the crowd to their feet, with two slow matches against Thionville (1-0 victory, 32nd final of the Coupe de France) and Strasbourg (1-1, day 18 of Ligue 1). , Marseille supporters can always count on the transfer window to experience some turnaround. While the trail leading up to Scotsman Josh Doig (Hellas Verona) has become more and more demanding in recent days, the Olympian leaders took everyone off on the wrong foot on Monday evening.

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In the construction site representing the left lane of defense, where Renan Lodi, the only specialist in the position in the first part of the season, was going to Al-Hilal (Saudi Arabia), a name came out of nowhere: Ulises Garcia. Everything happened very quickly earlier in the week, so much so that the Swiss international (7 caps, 28 years old) is on the verge of finalizing his contract with Bern’s young boys until 2026. The transfer fee is estimated at three million euros (plus bonuses).

Marseille management secretly worked on the Ulysses Garcia file as they sensed difficult negotiations with Hellas Verona for Josh Doig. And if the 21-year-old Scot was betting more on the future, Garcia, for his part, has few certainties for the present.

Solid experience in Champions League and Europa League

Born in Portugal to Cape Verdean parents, the left-back, cousin of Gelson Fernandes (Manchester City, Saint-Etienne, Rennes, Frankfurt), did all his training in Switzerland. After his first steps at FC Onex and Servette Genève, he made his professional debut in 2014 under the colors of Grasshopper Zurich. In the summer of 2015, aged 19, he joined Werder Bremen for a check of €600,000. After nearly twenty Bundesliga matches over three seasons and an unsuccessful loan to German venture Nuremberg, his only experience outside of Switzerland before potentially finding Ligue 1 in an OM jersey ended in 2018, the year of his return home.

Before the start of the 2018-2019 season, Young Boys Bern invested just one million euros in him. He started his career with the Swiss club firmly, notably exploring the Champions League in his first season. His solid European experience is a big plus for OM, who are still involved in the Europa League (play-offs against Shakhtar Donetsk on February 15 and 22). In just five seasons in the Young Boys, Ulysses García has played a total of 25 European Cup matches excluding qualifying matches (13 in the Champions League, 12 in the Europa League). This autumn, he also started in six of his club’s group matches in C1, finishing third in Group G behind Manchester City and Leipzig.

In the shadow of Ricardo Rodriguez in selection

Described as a calm, composed and technically clean player, he was once announced on the shelves of RC Lens during last summer’s transfer window. The result is his remarkable performance in the Super League, the Swiss Championship, where he has established himself over the season as a reference in his position. Last October, local media such as Le Matin and Tribune de Genève did not hesitate to describe him as “the best left-back in the Championship”. With the subsidiary question: What is he waiting for to establish himself in the Swiss selection? Called up for the first time in September 2021, he has struggled to establish himself over time as Ricardo Rodriguez’s understudy (Torino, ex-Wolfsburg, AC Milan). Called up during the last two Nati gatherings in October and November (with three picks), he made his big return in selection after an absence of over a year and a half (March 2022-September 2023).

When the key player returned to selection in October, he said, “It was tough not being called up, but I take it as motivation to work hard. Me.” A solid new performance with the Olympian tunic on his back could help him rediscover that taste of international matches.