Melbourne Victory have signed CommBank Socceroos midfielder Denis Genreau as they look to go one step further in the Isuzu UTE A-League this season.
Victory have lured former Melbourne City and Macarthur Bulls star Genreau, 26, back to the A-Leagues from Spanish side Deportivo de La Coruna on a three-year deal.
The six-time Australia international – who went up against Lionel Messi at the 2022 FIFA Men’s World Cup, returns to Melbourne, where the 2024-25 Grand Finalists have also recruited Socceroo Jason Davidson.
“I’m extremely grateful for the opportunity to join Melbourne Victory,” said Genreau, who spent four years at rivals City between 2016-20.
“Having played against Victory a number of times throughout my career, it’s always been the club with the biggest rivalries and best atmosphere in the A-League.
“As a player, you always want to be part of those games, to play for clubs that have such a strong following and fan base.
“After four seasons abroad, it was the right time to return to Australia and I’m looking forward to working with a quality team and coaching staff, under Arthur’s leadership, with the aim of securing points every week.
“My goal is to bring my best alongside my teammates, to put Victory in the best position it can to win silverware for the club and for the fans.”
Genreau brings plenty of experience to Victory after a successful spell in France.
The Aussie helped Toulouse clinch promotion to Ligue 1 in 2021-22, while he was part of the squad that won the 2022-23 Coupe de France – the club’s first.
He also played UEFA Europa League football against Liverpool at Anfield.
Genreau, meanwhile, enjoyed a loan stint at Dutch outfit PEC Zwolle before moving to Macarthur in 2020-21, while he scored one goal in nine appearances for Deportivo this season.
He is Victory’s latest signing after Louis D’Arrigo, Keegan Jelacic, Franco Lino (loan), Sebastian Esposito (loan), Jason Davidson, Emre Saglam (loan), Oliver Dragicevic and Xavier Stella, while academy trio Kayne Razmovski, Jack Mihailidis and Daniel Lazarevski have been promoted.
Clarismario Santos, Luka Kolić, Roderick Miranda and Adama Traore have re-signed for 2025-26.
Victory head coach Arthur Diles added: “We are absolutely delighted to have Denis joining us as we aim to build on the successes we had last season.
“Having spent a number of years in Europe, as well as earning national team experience, Denis has a deep understanding of elite football and we have no doubt he can have an enormous impact in the A-League.
