Galatasaray will reportedly turn to Manchester City veteran Ilkay Gundogan if their pursuit of Inter Milan’s Hakan Calhanoglu falls through.
Per Gazzetta dello Sport via FCInterNews, the Turkish giants have earmarked the 34-year-old as the first alternative.
Despite their genuine interest in Hakan Calhanoglu, Galatasaray cannot realistically expect Inter to let them take him away.
Indeed, the 31-year-old has been the cornerstone of Inter’s success since joining the club from AC Milan in 2021.
Therefore, it stands to reason that the Nerazzurri will do everything to stop the transfer.
Galatasaray Set Sights on Ilkay Gundogan as Hakan Calhanoglu Alternative
Calhanoglu has yet to address the situation amid growing speculation linking him with an immediate move to Istanbul.
However, Galatasaray must fork out around €40 million to get Inter’s go-ahead.
Since that’s unlikely to happen, the reigning Super Lig holders have cast a wide net in pursuit of a classy playmaker.
Ilkay Gundogan has drawn their attention, and he would be a much cheaper option than Calhanoglu.
Indeed, his deal at the Etihad Stadium runs out next summer.
With Pep Guardiola’s squad undergoing a comprehensive overhaul, the 34-year-old could soon be on his way out.
Inter should think about selling Hakan only if the replacement is an established quality one like Ederson. Selling Hakan to replace him with an unproven “talent” or mid-table player like Rovella or Ricci would be a big mistake.
That being said, Hakan is towards his end of career, and selling him now might be better than keeping him for one or two seasons more and see him lose stamina and market value. Serious investment is needed. I would sell both Hakan and Asllani, let Mikhi go, and get instead Ederson and Jashari. Hakan also has a big salary so his sale would open up space in the salary bill.
I think Asllani is purposely being made the main player to replace Hakan which is stuff of nightmares.
we have susic, aslani and zielinsky for dmf role.