Sassuolo announced the arrival of Fedde Leysen from Union Saint-Gilloise on Friday 21 August. The Belgian defender, twenty-three, joins on loan with an option that becomes an obligation if certain conditions are met, running to 30 June 2027. The Italian press reported a total package of around 8 million: that is a journalistic reconstruction, not a figure released by the clubs.
The profile at a glance
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Player | Fedde Leysen |
| Born | 9 July 2003 (23) |
| Place of birth | Geel, province of Antwerp, Belgium |
| Position | Centre-back |
| Height | 1.87 m |
| From | Union Saint-Gilloise |
| To | Sassuolo |
| Structure | Loan with option that becomes an obligation on conditions |
| Youth international | 17 caps for Belgium, from Under 16 to Under 21 |
Two schools, not one
Leysen’s path runs through two different development systems, and for a defender that counts for more than the sum of his appearances.
The first is Dutch. He arrived at PSV in 2019, went through the Under 17 and Under 19 sides and made his Jong PSV debut at seventeen; according to Sassuolo’s statement he closed that three-year spell with 59 appearances, 5 goals and 2 assists. It is a school that asks the centre-back to play first of all: a high line, defending forwards, the first pass as part of the defensive job rather than an extra.
The second is Union Saint-Gilloise’s, where he arrived in 2023. The Brussels club has built the most interesting cycle in Belgian football in recent years, and it has done so with aggressive football and a defence that defends a long way from its own goal. According to Sassuolo’s statement, Leysen made 84 league appearances and won the league, two national cups and the Super Cup.
The seven ninety-minute spells that matter most
His record includes seven Champions League appearances in the 2025-26 season. It is the most useful figure for gauging his level, because the Champions League is the only setting where a defender from a smaller league faces forwards who do not mistime their runs.
Seven games do not make a career, but they answer the first question a scout asks: when the level rises, does the player hold up or come apart? The fact that Union Saint-Gilloise used him for the entire group stage suggests that, for his coach, the answer was the former.
What changes in Serie A
The technical jump is not in the quality of the opponents, whom he has already met in the Champions League. It is in the type of game.
In Belgium and in Europe, Leysen mostly defended in open space, with the team high and a lot of ground behind him. The Italian league poses the opposite problem: low blocks, forwards playing with their back to goal, crowded boxes on crosses and set pieces. These are situations in which reading the interception and managing your body in contact matter more than recovery speed.
His physique helps. At 1.87 metres, defensive aerial duels are natural ground, and in a side that will often have to defend inside its own box that is the first competence required.
What to expect
Alberto Aquilani’s Sassuolo are signing a twenty-three-year-old who has already won something and already played in Europe, which shortens the settling-in period compared with a raw talent.
The open question is the same one that applies to almost every defender formed in leagues that concede space: the ability to defend the box rather than the pitch. The opening weeks, with the tempo Serie A imposes on set pieces, will give a faster answer than any preview analysis.
Data and information gathered from public sources: Sassuolo’s official announcement of 21 August 2026, public statistical and biographical archives, Italian and Belgian sports press. Deal figures are those reported by the press and should be read as indications.
Frequently asked questions
Who is Fedde Leysen?
A Belgian defender born on 9 July 2003 in Geel, in the province of Antwerp, so twenty-three years old and 1.87 metres tall. Developed across Westerlo, Oud-Heverlee Leuven and PSV, he established himself at Union Saint-Gilloise from 2023.
On what terms did he join Sassuolo?
A loan with an option that becomes an obligation if certain conditions are met, running to 30 June 2027, according to the club's official statement of 21 August 2026. The Italian press reported a total package of around 8 million and a condition tied to Sassuolo staying in Serie A: these are journalistic reconstructions.
What international experience does he have?
Seven Champions League appearances in the 2025-26 season with Union Saint-Gilloise, according to Sassuolo's statement. At international level he has 17 caps across Belgium's youth sides, from Under 16 to Under 21.
What has he won in Belgium?
The Belgian league title, two national cups and the Super Cup, according to the club statement. Those trophies tell the story of Union Saint-Gilloise, the club that has overturned the hierarchy of Belgian football in recent years.
What kind of defender is he?
A centre-back with above-average physical build at 1.87 metres, shaped by two schools that ask defenders to play: the Dutch one at PSV and Union Saint-Gilloise's, built on a high line and building from the back as a principle. In Serie A he will find a context that asks for more defensive reading and offers fewer open metres.
