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Leroy Sané
20180602 FIFA Friendly Match Austria vs. Germany Leroy Sané 850 0668.jpg
Sané with Germany in 2018
Personal information
Date of birth (1996-01-11) 11 January 1996 (age 28)
Place of birth Essen, Germany
Height 1.83 m
Playing position Winger
Club information
Current club Bayern Munich
Number 10
Youth career
2001–2005 SG Wattenscheid 09
2005–2008 Schalke 04
2008–2011 Bayer Leverkusen
2011–2014 Schalke 04
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2014–2016 Schalke 04 47 (11)
2016–2020 Manchester City 90 (25)
2020– Bayern Munich 129 (30)
National team
2014–2015 Germany U19 11 (5)
2015–2016 Germany U21 10 (5)
2015– Germany 65 (13)
Honours
Men's football
Representing  Germany
FIFA Confederations Cup
Winner 2017 Russia
  • Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 16:24, 9 November 2024 (UTC).

† Appearances (Goals).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 19:13, 5 July 2024 (UTC)

Leroy Aziz Sané (German pronunciation: [ˈliːʁɔʏ zaˈneː]; born 11 January 1996) is a German professional footballer who plays as a winger for Bundesliga club Bayern Munich and the Germany national team. He is known for his pace and dribbling ability.

Sané made his professional debut for Schalke 04 in 2014 and transferred to Manchester City in 2016 for an initial £37 million fee. He was voted PFA Young Player of the Year in 2017–18, becoming the first and so far only German player to win the award, after helping City win the Premier League and EFL Cup.

Sané made his senior international debut for Germany in November 2015 and was part of their squad that reached the semi-finals of UEFA Euro 2016.

Early life

Sané was born on 11 January 1996 in Essen, Germany and was raised near the Lohrheidestadion, Wattenscheid. He is the son of former German rhythmic gymnast and 1984 Summer Olympics bronze medalist Regina Weber, and former footballer and Senegalese international Souleymane Sané. He was named Leroy in honour of Claude Le Roy, a former head coach of his father. His father met his mother while playing professionally for SG Wattenscheid 09. Souleymane Sané was raised in France; he moved to Germany through his service in the French Army. Sané's two brothers, Kim and Sidi, have played for the youth side or second XI of major German football clubs.

Club career

Early career

Sané began playing football in 2001 for the youth team of SG Wattenscheid 09. In 2005, he joined Schalke 04. Three years later, he joined Bayer Leverkusen, before returning to the Schalke youth academy (Nachwuchsleistungszentrum) in 2011.

Schalke 04

Shahter-Shalke (6)
Sané playing for Schalke 04 in 2016

On 21 March 2014, Sané signed a three-year professional contract with Schalke ending on 30 June 2017. He made his Bundesliga debut on 20 April 2014 against VfB Stuttgart. He replaced Max Meyer after 77 minutes in a 3–1 away defeat. He scored his first goal of the season in a 2–1 home defeat to 1. FC Köln on 13 December. On 11 March 2015, Sané scored in his first UEFA Champions League match in a 4–3 victory over Real Madrid, although his side were knocked out of the competition on 5–4 aggregate.

Manchester City

2016–17: Debut season

On 2 August 2016, Sané joined Premier League club Manchester City, signing a five-year contract for a reported £37 million transfer fee, with performance-related add-ons potentially making the fee £46.5 million. He made his debut in a 1–2 win in the Manchester derby against Manchester United on 10 September. His first goal for City came in a 2–1 home win against Arsenal in the Premier League on 18 December. Following a spell on the sidelines due to injury, Sané made his return in a game against Tottenham Hotspur and scored in the 2–2 draw at the City of Manchester Stadium on 21 January 2017. On 28 January, he scored in a 3–0 away win over Crystal Palace in the FA Cup fourth round match.

On 21 February, Sané scored in a 5–3 comeback win over Monaco in the Champions League round of 16 first leg match. On 1 March, he scored in a 5–1 home win over Huddersfield Town in the FA Cup fifth round replay match. Four days later, on 5 March, he scored in a 2–0 away win over Sunderland. On 15 March, Sané scored in the return fixture of the Champions League tie against Monaco; however, City lost 1–3, knocking them out from the tournament on away goals. On 2 April, Sané scored the opening goal in an eventual 2–2 draw with Arsenal. On 15 April, he scored in a 3–0 win over Southampton.

In July 2017, Sané said he believed his debut season at City had been limited by his inability to breathe through his nose. He said he particularly suffered during matches, with his constantly blocked nose hampering his performance and causing him intense frustration. He opted to have corrective surgery during the off-season break. Although this caused him to miss that year's FIFA Confederations Cup, he said his chronic nasal congestion was becoming increasingly unbearable for him and that he wished to enter the next season feeling happy and healthy.

2017–19: Back-to-back league titles

Sané scored his first two goals of the 2017–18 season in City's 5–0 home win against Liverpool on 9 September 2017. On 20 September, he scored twice in a 2–1 away win over West Bromwich Albionin the third-round match of the League Cup. On 23 September, he scored in a 5–0 win over Crystal Palace. On 14 October, he scored in a 7–2 win over Stoke City. On 21 October, he scored in a 3–0 win over Burnley. On 28 October, he scored in a 3–2 away win over West Bromwich Albion. After scoring and assisting once in each of his three matches, he earned the Premier League Player of the Month award for October 2017. On 6 January 2018, he scored in a 4–1 win in the FA Cup third round over Burnley. On 14 January, he scored in a 4–3 defeat to Liverpool. Nine days later, on 23 January, he scored in a 3–2 away win over Bristol City, securing advancement into the League Cup final, in which he played 77 minutes before being substituted off as City won 3–0 over Arsenal to clinch their first trophy under Pep Guardiola. On 1 March, five days following the win in the final, he scored against Arsenal in a 3–0 league away win. On 31 March, he scored in a 3–1 away win over Everton, putting City just a win away from winning the league title. On 29 April, he scored in a 4–1 away win over West Ham United.

Sané was voted the PFA Young Player of the Year for his part in Manchester City's 2017–18 Premier League title win, edging teammates Raheem Sterling and Ederson, as well as Tottenham Hotspur's Harry Kane. With 15 assists, Sané just missed out on winning the inaugural Premier League Playmaker of the Season award to teammate Kevin De Bruyne.

On 15 September 2018, Sané scored the opening goal and his first of the 2018–19 season in City's 3–0 home win against Fulham. He later scored the final goal in consecutive home match wins over Burnley and Southampton. On 24 November, Sané assisted a first-half goal for Sterling and scored a brace in a 4–0 away win over West Ham United.

On 3 January 2019, he scored the winning goal for Manchester City in the 72nd minute of the game against Liverpool, which resulted in Liverpool's first and only league defeat of the season. On 21 February 2019, Manchester City were 2–1 down in the first leg of the Champions League round of 16 tie against Sané's former club, Schalke, playing with only 10 men after Nicolás Otamendi was sent off on the 68th minute. Sané levelled the scores with a stunning free kick from just under 30 yards only seven minutes after being substituted for Sergio Agüero. He chose not to celebrate out of respect for his former club. City went on to win the game 3–2 with the winning goal scored by Raheem Sterling.

On 13 March 2019, in the second leg of the Champions League round of 16 clash against Schalke, Sané put in an incredible performance with three assists and a goal to contribute to Manchester City's 7–0 victory against his former club, sending City to the quarter-finals of the competition. On 24 April 2019, Sané scored the second and final goal in a match against Manchester United during the 66th minute to secure City a Manchester derby win. It was his first Manchester derby goal.

2019–20: Injury

Sané was repeatedly linked with Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich to replace club staples Franck Ribéry, who was leaving the club, and retiring Arjen Robben. Despite a deal to the German side reportedly being nearly finalized, Sané was named in the starting 11 against Liverpool in the FA Community Shield. After only 10 minutes, Sané was substituted after sustaining a torn ACL, ruling him out for the majority of the season and ending talks with Bayern until his injury healed. In June 2020, Sané rejected a contract extension at Manchester City, with Guardiola stating that Sané would leave the club in the summer.

Bayern Munich

2022-07-30 Fußball, Männer, DFL-Supercup, RB Leipzig - FC Bayern München 1DX 3364 by Stepro
Sané with Bayern Munich in 2022

On 3 July 2020, Bayern Munich agreed to sign a five-year deal with Sané for an initial €45 million with add-ons rising to a potential €60 million. Sané scored on his second Bundesliga debut in an 8–0 win against former club Schalke 04. On 3 November 2020, Sané scored his first Champions League goal for Bayern Munich in a 6–2 away win over Red Bull Salzburg in the 2020–21 season.

In the 2021–22 Champions League season, he scored six goals and provided six assists in ten matches including three goals in two matches against Benfica. On 7 September 2022, he scored a goal and had his shot deflected to an own goal in a 2–0 away win against Inter Milan, to be awarded Player of the Match in the first encounter of the 2022–23 UEFA Champions League. A month later, on 4 October, he scored a brace in a 5–0 win over Viktoria Plzeň, to reach his 20th goal in the Champions League.

On 20 September 2023, Sané scored the first goal in a 4–3 victory over Manchester United to be named Man of the Match in the opening fixture of the 2023–24 Champions League campaign, which was also his club's first goal in the competition for the second consecutive season against the same goalkeeper, André Onana, with two different clubs. Subsequently, he was named Bayern's Player of the Month for the previous month of August.

International career

Youth

2019-06-11 Fußball, Männer, Länderspiel, Deutschland-Estland StP 2068 LR10 by Stepro
Sané with Germany in 2019

Sané was first called up to the Germany under-21 team by youth coach Horst Hrubesch on 28 August 2015 for the friendly against Denmark and for the 2017 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualifier against Azerbaijan. On 3 September 2015, he made his debut for the German U21 side in a 2–1 win at Stadion an der Lohmühle in Lübeck against Denmark, where he was replaced after 73 minutes by Julian Brandt.

Senior

Sané received his first senior call-up to the German senior team on 6 November 2015 in a friendly against France. Sané was eligible to play for France, due to also holding French citizenship. On 13 November 2015, he was substituted in the 61st-minute for Julian Draxler in a friendly match against France in Saint-Denis in a 2–0 defeat for the Germans that was overshadowed by shootings and explosions around the stadium.

Sané was selected by Germany boss Joachim Löw to represent the country at UEFA Euro 2016. He participated in one match, replacing Bastian Schweinsteiger in the 79th minute in Germany's 2–0 semi-final defeat to France.

Sané was omitted from Germany's final 23-man squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in favour of another young player, Julian Brandt, on 4 June 2018. In September 2018, after he was selected for the squad to face games against France and Peru, he left the team hotel after a discussion with Joachim Löw, citing "personal reasons" as his cause for leaving. It was later revealed that the reason for leaving was due to the birth of his daughter.

On 16 November 2018, he scored his first goal for Germany against Russia following an assist from Serge Gnabry. The goal came in the eighth minute of the game as Germany won 3–0.

On 19 May 2021, he was selected to the squad for the UEFA Euro 2020. He played in all four of Germany's matches: starting once against Hungary and appearing as a substitute against France, Portugal and England.

In November 2022, he was named in the 26-man squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

In June 2024, Sané was named in Germany's squad for the UEFA Euro 2024.

Career statistics

Club

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup League cup Europe Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Schalke 04 2013–14 Bundesliga 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
2014–15 13 3 0 0 1 1 14 4
2015–16 33 8 2 0 7 1 42 9
Total 47 11 2 0 8 2 57 13
Manchester City 2016–17 Premier League 26 5 5 2 2 0 4 2 37 9
2017–18 32 10 3 1 5 3 9 0 49 14
2018–19 31 10 4 2 3 0 8 4 1 0 47 16
2019–20 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0
Total 90 25 12 5 10 3 21 6 2 0 135 39
Bayern Munich 2020–21 Bundesliga 32 6 1 1 8 3 3 0 44 10
2021–22 32 7 2 1 10 6 1 0 45 14
2022–23 32 8 3 1 8 4 1 1 44 14
2023–24 27 8 1 0 12 2 1 0 42 10
2024–25 6 1 1 1 3 1 0 0 10 3
Total 129 30 9 4 42 16 6 1 186 51
Career total 266 66 23 9 10 3 71 24 8 1 378 103

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Germany 2015 1 0
2016 3 0
2017 5 0
2018 8 2
2019 4 3
2020 4 1
2021 15 5
2022 10 0
2023 9 2
2024 6 0
Total 65 13
Germany score listed first, score column indicates score after each Sané goal.
List of international goals scored by Leroy Sané
No. Date Venue Cap Opponent Score Result Competition
1 15 November 2018 Red Bull Arena, Leipzig, Germany 16  Russia 1–0 3–0 Friendly
2 19 November 2018 Arena AufSchalke, Gelsenkirchen, Germany 17  Netherlands 2–0 2–2 2018–19 UEFA Nations League A
3 24 March 2019 Johan Cruyff Arena, Amsterdam, Netherlands 19  Netherlands 1–0 3–2 UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying
4 8 June 2019 Borisov Arena, Barysaw, Belarus 20  Belarus 1–0 2–0
5 11 June 2019 Opel Arena, Mainz, Germany 21  Estonia 8–0 8–0
6 14 November 2020 Red Bull Arena, Leipzig, Germany 24  Ukraine 1–1 3–1 2020–21 UEFA Nations League A
7 7 June 2021 Merkur Spiel-Arena, Düsseldorf, Germany 30  Latvia 7–1 7–1 Friendly
8 2 September 2021 Kybunpark, St. Gallen, Switzerland 35  Liechtenstein 2–0 2–0 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
9 8 September 2021 Laugardalsvöllur, Reykjavík, Iceland 37  Iceland 3–0 4–0
10 11 November 2021 Volkswagen Arena, Wolfsburg, Germany 39  Liechtenstein 3–0 9–0
11 5–0
12 9 September 2023 Volkswagen Arena, Wolfsburg, Germany 54  Japan 1–1 1–4 Friendly
13 12 September 2023 Westfalenstadion, Dortmund, Germany 55  France 2–0 2–1 Friendly

Honours

Manchester City

Bayern Munich

Germany

Individual

See also

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