Paris Saint-Germain agree shock deal for Schalke defender

Schalke sporting director Christian Heidel has confirmed they have reached a shock agreement with Paris Saint-Germain for versatile defender Thilo Kehrer.

PSG have agreed a reported €34m (£30m) fee with their German counterparts for the 21-year-old, who is predominately a centre-back.

The Ligue 1 champions have been heavily linked with a move for Bayern Munich defender Jerome Boateng, but Kehrer’s impending arrival would seemingly end those talks.

“Kehrer will leave Schalke,” Heidel confirmed at a club press conference, via their official Twitter account. “Rarely have I known such a loyal and well-to-do young man. We had already agreed a contract extension.

“We have already been made aware of a contract with PSG. The transfer will have economic factors which Schalke could not refuse.”

Kehrer marks the second signing PSG have made this season following the arrival of Gianluigi Buffon on a free transfer.

Schalke will only have recouped more money from the sales of Leroy Sane and Julian Draxler when Kehrer’s transfer officially goes through.

The Germany Under-21 international made 28 appearances in the Bundesliga last season, with 23 of those at centre-back.

Kehrer averaged 2.9 tackles per game in the league last term and even proved a threat going forward, netting three times.

Indeed, only Naldo (6) and Daniel Caliguri (7) won the WhoScored Man of the Match award more times than Kehrer of all Schalke players last term (3).