Loud reception for Sané on his debut for Galatasaray
Following Leroy Sané's highly publicized move to Galatasaray Istanbul, he has now made his debut for his new club, receiving frenzied applause.
Presenting himself to the fans at the stadium: Sané was enthusiastically welcomed by the Galatasaray fans. IMAGO/Anadolu Agency
Following his transfer from FC Bayern Munich to Galatasaray Istanbul, Leroy Sané only returned to training with the Turkish champions last Thursday, following a trip to the Club World Cup with his former employers. Now the 29-year-old made his debut in a friendly against French first division side Racing Strasbourg ( 3-1 ) and received a rousing welcome from the fans.
With his new team leading 3-0, the German was substituted in the 75th minute for former Freiburg player Roland Sallai, who put his team on the road to victory with his goal in the fifth minute. Before the match, Sané was presented to the fans at RAMS Park, who cheered him enthusiastically.
Sané has his sights set on the 2026 World CupAfter five years with Bayern, Sané signed a contract in Istanbul until 2028, where, according to the club, he will earn nine million euros net per season . However, according to coach Okan Buruk, the mood at the club was the reason for the transfer. "In my opinion, the decisive factor for the move was that he played against us twice with Bayern – once in Istanbul, once in Munich. The atmosphere in Istanbul was fantastic, and it captivated him," the 51-year-old recently told Sky .
Sané will play in the Champions League with the 25-time Turkish champions next season and, according to his own statement, wants to "assume an absolute leadership role." The winger also has his sights set on the upcoming 2026 World Cup and aims to impress national coach Julian Nagelsmann with strong performances in the Turkish league, as well as on the international stage.
For Galatasaray, the upcoming league season doesn't begin until two weeks from now, on August 8, with an away game against Gaziantep FK. Before that, the club has a friendly against Lazio Rome next Saturday. Until then, the big new name Sané has to fully integrate into the team. Then he will certainly get significantly more playing time than just 15 minutes.
