Paris sign third VELUX EHF Champions League player

It had been a rumour for a long time, but now it's official. Daniel Narcisse has signed a two-year contract with the French league leaders Paris Saint-Germain, and will transfer from THW Kiel at the end of the season.

After Hamburg's Igor Vori and Velenje's Fahrudin Melic, this is Paris' third big signature for next season.

Leading the French league by five points ahead of second place Montpellier, PSG should, barring any surprises, take part in next year's VELUX EHF Champions League, and are reinforcing their squad accordingly.

Daniel Narcisse has won almost everything, in club and international competitions. With Kiel, he has won two VELUX EHF Champions League (2010 and 2012), two German Bundesliga, and two German national cup titles.

Narcisse was part of Kiel's unique and unprecedented unbeaten season last year, in which the club won the VELUX EHF Champions League, alongside all of their domestic competitions.

With the French national team, Narcisse has won two World Championships (2001 and 2009), two EHF EURO crowns (2006 and 2010), and taken home Olympic gold twice (2008 and 2012).

In Paris, Daniel Narcisse will once again team up with Philippe Gardent, the coach who first put him in the spotlight back in 1998 when he helped Chambéry win their first French league in 2001.

Narcisse later moved to Germany, playing with VFL Gummersbach for three seasons, before returning to Chambéry, until a move to Kiel, where he is currently playing in his fourth season.

Gardent, Paris' head coach, spoke about the move to French sports newspaper L'Equipe: "Having Daniel in your team is a guarantee, and is insurance for the team.

"He's a player that makes those around him play better, but he's always capable of catching on fire and taking his team on his shoulders whenever it's needed."