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Charlton Athletic have signed German defender Patrick Bauer on a four-year deal from Portuguese side Maritimo for an undisclosed fee.

The 22-year-old began his career with Stuttgart before moving to Maritimo, initially on loan, in 2012.

The ex-Germany youth international was a regular during the 2014-15 season for the side that finished ninth in Portugal's top flight.

On Saturday, young defender Joe Gomez joined Liverpool for £3.5m.

"After reluctantly losing one of our young academy talents, the fans expect us to invest back into the team," Charlton chief executive Katrien Meire told the

"We made bringing Patrick to The Valley one of our priorities as soon as the window opened. I expect him to be the first of many new faces this summer as we look to build for the future."

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