Fenerbahce president Ali Koç has revealed that an injury to Yves Bissouma stopped them signing him from Tottenham Hotspur this summer.
Fener Ajans cover comments from the Fenerbahce president today in which he admits the Tottenham man was the number eight that they wanted this summer.
“We all want a number 8. Bissouma was close, but he got injured,” he is quoted as saying.
“We want a smart number 8. She can distribute the ball intelligently and play box-to-box. We’re working on a young player. Transfers at Fenerbahçe don’t end until the last minute. Those coming in and out never end. We’ll push the envelope until the last moment.”
Bissouma has been linked with a move away from Tottenham throughout the summer, with him seemingly not a part of Thomas Frank’s plans moving forwards.
Numerous reports have linked him with a switch to Türkiye and Fenerbahce, although they have flip flopped. While reports have suggested that Bissouma was keen on the move, others have stated he wanted to remain in England for another year to secure a British passport.
Now Koç claims that a deal won’t be happening because of an injury. That’s interesting because he was reported to have returned from a muscle injury on August 30th. The Turkish transfer window doesn’t close until Friday, September 12th.
The cynics among us would suggest that’s an easy excuse, particularly after a report from Türkiye last week stated that Fenerbahce had been handed “a whole sheet of paper” detailing Bissouma’s personal issues and reasons not to sign him from Tottenham this summer.
Either way, it appears Bissouma won’t be moving to Fenerbahce before tomorrow’s deadline, with Koç insisting an injury has scuppered that idea.