Erden Timur, the vice-president of Galatasaray, expressed satisfaction when discussing the transfer of Nicolo Zaniolo from Roma to Turkey
Erden Timur, the vice-president of Galatasaray, spoke positively about the transfer that brought Nicolo Zaniolo from Roma to the Turkish club.
The 23-year-old Italian forward left Roma during the winter transfer window after a breakdown in relations with the club’s management and fans.
Timur claims Zaniolo has made a ‘difference’
Zaniolo had previously been in good spirits after Roma’s Europa Conference League win last season.
Timur, speaking to Gianluca Di Marzio, discussed how the transfer represents Galatasaray’s plans for the future.
“Last year we invested €90m, but the team finished 13th. The only difference is that we did not have Zaniolo.
“Zaniolo had been sold to Bournemouth for €29m+3m six days before Roma accepted our proposal of €15m, to be paid over five years.
“In the last days of the market we were looking for a player with those characteristics and we had identified two profiles: Hakim Ziyech and Niccolò Zaniolo.
“For both players it happened that their outright purchase negotiations had broken down and they could have turned out to be cheap bargains.
“We bought players with a higher value than their purchase price. We are working on a 30-year vision in order to clear the debts from previous market years.”
Since his arrival in early February, Zaniolo has played two games for Galatasaray and scored on his debut against Kasimpasa.
The Italian forward is currently under contract with the Turkish club until June 2027 and has a release clause that is said to be around €25-30m, which is considered to be relatively low for a player of his quality.
