France midfielder Ngolo Kante has signed for Fenerbahce from Saudi side Al-Ittihad thanks to “support” from president Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Turkish club said on Wednesday.
World Cup winner Kante, who turns 35 next month, had been set to move to Istanbul earlier but the transfer seemed to have failed due to an administrative error.
The length of Kante’s contract has not been revealed but it offers the two-time Premier League winning midfielder a chance to further his claim for a place in France’s World Cup finals squad.
Erdogan was in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, making his first visit to the country in more than two years.
“Our club has successfully completed the transfer of N’Golo Kante, a prominent figure in world football,” Fenerbahce president Sadettin Saran said.
“On behalf of myself and our club, I would like to express my gratitude to our President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for his significant support in ensuring the positive conclusion of this process, which will contribute to the development of both Fenerbahce and Turkish football,” he added.
Going in the opposite direction is Fenerbahce’s experienced Moroccan international striker Youssef En-Nesyri.
The 28-year-old, who was part of the Morocco side that reached the 2022 World Cup semi-finals and last month’s Africa Cup of Nations final, replaces Karim Benzema, who left Al-Ittihad for Saudi rivals Al-Hilal on Monday.
En-Nesyri, who has scored 25 goals in 92 appearances for Morocco, had signed a five-year contract with Fenerbahce when he joined from Spanish La Liga side Sevilla in 2024 but said he was unhappy and wanted to leave.
Fenerbahce, 19-time Turkish champions, have also signed Kante’s fellow France midfielder Matteo Guendouzi during the winter transfer window.
They are locked in a tight battle for the league title, three points off fellow-Istanbul side Galatasaray, and face English club Nottingham Forest in the Europa League knockout play-offs later this month.
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