Fenerbahce have reached agreement with Manchester United over the transfer of Robin van Persie to the Turkish club for a fee of £4.7m. As the Guardian reported last Saturday, the player had finalised terms over the move, and the two clubs have been locked in talks all week.
The Fenerbahce sporting director, Giuliano Terraneo, travelled to England to hold final discussions with United this week and the clubs expect the move to be completed before the end of the week.
On Thursday Fenerbahce released a statement to the Istanbul stock exchange confirming the talks with United. Van Persie, who is expected in Istanbul on Sunday, has been offered a three-year deal with an option for a further 12 months and will be the third forward United have lost this summer after the confirmation that Radamel Falcao, who spent last season on loan at Old Trafford, will play for Chelsea next season. Ángelo Henríquez has joined Dinamo Zagreb on a permanent deal after playing there on loan last season.
Wayne Rooney remains at the club, as does James Wilson, and United have already signed Memphis Depay from PSV Eindhoven. Javier Hernández was loaned out last season and it is uncertain whether he will be given a chance now.
Van Persie, meanwhile, will replace Dirk Kuyt as Fenerbahce’s only Dutch player and the striker will become the highest earner at the club. The developments are similar to the Nani deal, which was completed on Sunday.
An agreement in principle with the 28-year-old winger was already in place before Terraneo flew out to Portugal to hold final talks with the player’s agent, after which he struck a £4.3m deal with United. Terraneo was among the crowd that welcomed Nani to Istanbul and the Portuguese international said the Italian had been influential in the transfer process. “I am delighted to be here and want to thank the president and Terraneo for bringing me here,” he said.
Nani’s comments underline how important Terraneo has been in the club’s flurry of transfer activity since the start of the window and marks a complete change in the club’s footballing policy.
The Fenerbahce president, Aziz Yildirim, and the board have handed the 61-year-old Italian the reins on transfer policy. Traditionally Turkish presidents and boards have had a far more hands-on approach in the transfer process, with sporting directors serving merely as figureheads holding limited sway.
The former Lazio and Internazionale man became the first foreign sporting director at the club when he took charge at the end of last season but has already become a cult figure among the club’s fans.
Fenerbahce have also completed the signings of the Lille centre-back Simon Kjaer, the Brazil international Josef de Souza from São Paulo, last season’s Super Lig golden boot winner Fernandão and the Turkish international Sener Ozbayrakli.
Emre Sarigul is the editor of Turkish Football. Follow him on Twitter here