naaba wrote: ↑Wed Aug 09, 2023 12:23
I just read about Oxlade-Chamberlain in Besiktas. It seems like the Istanbul clubs are back at transferring big names ?
What's the overall football situation in Türkiye ? Because I mainly recall of salaries being paid late, if not at all. Or fixed matchs causing European bans.
Is it going to be a long-term transfer politics or could it crash again ? After all the country went as low as 20th on the 2022 ranking...
I think Galatasaray will make it to the group stage quite easily thanks to the draws. But if their luck runs out and they fall in a group with Manchester City, Real Madrid and AC Milan they'll be a 0-0-6 candidate.
Yes, Istanbul clubs are targeting big names again but in a slightly different way than a few years ago.
Some transfers are done with the help of sponsors (like Icardi at Galatasaray) or are just opportunities (Oxlade-Chamberlain is a free agent, Besiktas want to get Pepe from Arsenal for free, etc.)
They are mostly younger than before (around 30 y.o) and with Saudi Arabia around the corner, at least they don't come to Turkey just for money.
Turkey isn't a pre-retirement destination anymore.
Salaries are paid on time since the clubs did notice that players weren't motivated on the pitch when they weren't paid.
Match-fixing ban only happened once around 10 years ago. The other bans were related to Financial Fair-Play.
Currently, big teams follow UEFA's advises and manage to stay within the rules of FFP so it's less likely that they get another ban again.
Of course it could crash again, but I don't see it happening in the short-term because transfers are wiser this time.
Galatasaray paid 15m€ for Zaniolo, but they will likely get a nice benefit when they sell him for instance.
Another thing that changed is the mentality. Turkish teams are aware now of the importance of the coefficient points - it started after Turkey lost its direct access to CL group stage. I can see almost after every matchday an article about this subject on Turkish media.
Most transfers are finalized as soon as possible so they are ready for qualifiers and the start of the league. And not on the last days of the transfer window because players were cheaper.
They keep their best players too and don't sell it when they get a good offer.
In Galatasaray's case, they aim to win a European cup within a few years. Of course that won't be CL, but it's not impossible in Conference League for instance.
In a group with Man City, Milan and Real Madrid many teams will be a 0-0-6 candidate, not just Galatasaray.
