Lviv's Karpaty have officially completed the transfer of 29-year-old Spanish winger Joaquín Sifuentes, who previously played for Kamianets-Podilskyi's Epitsentr. This is reported by Sport RBC.UA citing the official website of FC Karpaty. Thus, the Lviv club continues its course of strengthening the attack with Spanish foreign players, and the footballer has already begun preparing with the new team. A detailed analysis of the deal, the player's career path, and his statistics — in the XAB.info material.

According to Sport RBC.UA, the agreement between the club and the footballer was signed on a '2+1' scheme: the basic contract is for two years, with an option to extend for another season. For the transfer of the Spanish attacking midfielder, Karpaty paid Epitsentr €260,000. The club emphasizes the versatility of the newcomer: the winger is capable of equally effectively covering both wings of the attack, which gives the coaching staff tactical flexibility at the start of the 2026/27 season.

Contract details and release clause

The financial part of the deal looks moderate for the UPL level: €260,000 release clause for a player who last season became one of the key attacking elements of Epitsentr. The '2+1' scheme allows the Lviv team to secure the foreign player for two seasons, while retaining the possibility of prolongation for a third year depending on form and contribution to the result. For Sifuentes himself, the move to Karpaty is a step to a more prominent club in the Ukrainian championship with greater ambitions and higher media exposure than in Kamianets-Podilskyi.

Career: from Albacete through Andorra

Joaquín Sifuentes was born in the Spanish city of Albacete and spent a long time in the lower divisions of Spain, where he played for Almansa, Atletico Ibanez, Quintanar del Rey, and Socuéllamos. The turning point was 2023: the Spaniard moved to Andorra, where as part of Santa Coloma he won the championship, Cup, and Super Cup of the country, completing a full 'treble' in a new football space for him. It was this success that became the springboard for moving to the level of the Ukrainian Premier League.

Season at Epitsentr and the start of 2026/27

In the summer of 2025, Sifuentes became a player of Epitsentr. In his debut and only full season, the Spaniard played all 30 championship matches, scoring 8 goals and making 7 assists — a figure confirming his status as a versatile wing player. At the start of the 2026/27 season, Joaquín appeared in all three opening matches and scored 2 goals, both against Kyiv's Obolon in the first round. Such productivity in the first weeks of the championship likely became one of the triggers for Karpaty's interest.

Contradictory data

During fact-checking, a discrepancy was found in the status of the deal between sources. Some publications (including ua-football.com and sport.ua) presented the information as a process — 'Karpaty are preparing a transfer' and 'Karpaty are signing a Spaniard from Epitsentr', meaning that at the time of publication, the agreement was still being formalized. At the same time, Sport RBC.UA, citing the official website of FC Karpaty, reports on the completion of the transfer and the signing of the contract. Thus, the 'in process' version and the 'officially signed' version relate to different time slices: the initial reports recorded negotiations, and the subsequent one — their completion. The figures on the release clause (€260k) and the contract scheme ('2+1') match in all checked sources.

Tactical role and expectations

For Karpaty, signing Sifuentes is a strengthening of both wings of the attack with one versatile performer capable of covering a deficit on any side. Given his readiness for the season (the player has already joined the preparation) and fresh scoring form, the newcomer can immediately enter the starting lineup. The next rounds of the 2026/27 season will show how quickly the Spaniard will adapt to the requirements of the Lviv club and whether he can repeat the indicators shown at Epitsentr.