St-Etienne draft in Porto's Machado
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
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AS Saint-Etienne have loaned Portuguese Under-21 international midfielder Paulo Machado from FC Porto as they prepare to return to Europe in the UEFA Cup.
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Loan experience
The 22-year-old has agreed a one-year loan deal with the French side, with the option of a further 12 months as he looks to "continue to develop and help St-Etienne". A member of the Portugal side that triumphed at the 2002/03 UEFA European Under-17 Championship, Machado was given his first-team debut by José Mourinho at the age of 17 in the 2003/04 season and has played on loan at CF Estrela da Amadora, UD Leiria and, most recently, Leixões SC.
Friendly advice
He was persuaded to join St-Etienne after a chat with Portugal international Hélder Postiga, who left Porto for Sporting Clube de Portugal this summer, and played 16 league games on loan with the French side in 2006. "I told Hélder Postiga about my proposed move and he could only tell me good things about St-Etienne," said Paulo Machado. St-Etienne finished fifth in Ligue 1 last season to earn a place in the UEFA Cup first round, having not played in a UEFA club competition - barring the UEFA Intertoto Cup - in 26 years. This summer they have already signed Daisuke Matsui from Le Mans UC 72, Sébastien Grax from FC Sochaux-Montbéliard and Cyril Sauget from AS Nancy-Lorraine.