Brighton and Hove Albion hope to confirm the signings of Celtic playmaker Matt O’Riley and Fenerbahce full-back Ferdi Kadioglu for a combined £55 million early next week with the duo heading to the Premier League.
- Exclusive from Graeme Bailey
Brighton have already spent comfortably in excess of £100 million this summer.
But The Seagulls are not done yet, with at least two more big-money arrivals on the verge of being completed ahead of next week’s transfer deadline.
HITC reported on Friday that Brighton and Hove Albion had agreed a deal in the region of £25 million with Fenerbahce for their swashbuckling full-back Ferdi Kadioglu.
One of the breakout talents of this summer’s European Championships, the right-footed Kadioglu is one of the most versatile and adaptable footballers around.
By the admission of Fener president Ali Koc, Kadioglu was brought to Instanbul from NEC Nijmegen to play as a number ten. Instead, the ‘extraordinary’ Dutch-born 24-year-old has blossomed into an aggressive and attack-minded capable of thriving on either flank.
His two-footedness could come in very handy at Brighton.
Especially with head coach Fabian Hurzeler confirming, prior to Saturday’s meeting with Manchester United at The Amex, that both Tariq Lamptey and Pervis Estupinan are yet to recover from recent injury issues.
Brighton and Hove Albion agree Ferdi Kadioglu deal
Jose Mourinho, Fenerbahce’s new head coach, wanted to keep Kadioglu and he will be disappointed by the wideman’s imminent departure.
“Teams that want to achieve something should develop their squads and not lose their best players,” Mourinho, the former Chelsea, Real Madrid and Inter Milan coach, told BeIN Sports recently. “I want Ferdi to stay, but it is a matter above me.
“He is a great professional and a very good kid. He is training very well. I hope he stays in the team.”
HITC understands that Kadioglu could be unveiled as a Brighton player on Monday after he undergoes his medical. The same can be said of Matt O’Riley, the Celtic playmaker finally set to arrive for a cool £30 million.
O’Riley will replace Jota as the most expensive export in Celtic’s history. He too is due to undergo medical tests before a potential announcement at the start of next week.
The London-born Denmark international, formerly of Fulham, won both the Scottish Premiership and Celtic’s Player of the Year award in 2023/24. He scored 19 goals while setting up 18 more from his attacking number eight role.
And if the stylish, left-footed O’Riley can come anywhere close to replicating those numbers south of the border, he could be one of the best Premier League newcomers of the summer window.
Matt O’Riley also on his way from Celtic
“He has been absolutely phenomenal really in his consistency,” Rodgers told Celtic’s official website in May after O’Riley was officially announced as the club’s finest player across 2023/24.
“To look at his numbers now, it’s huge testament to himself because the work he puts in, the focus he puts in every single day at training to improve and be better. That’s clearly been rewarded by his team-mates and everyone else. (The Player of the Year award) is very well deserved.
“He is very humble. There is nothing flash about him. His peers recognise the work he puts in and the mentality that he has.
“They know when they sit beside him in the changing room, this is a guy that puts in absolutely everything for the team and that is obviously very much respected.”
Brighton have already paid big fees for the likes of Georginio Rutter, Mats Wieffer and former Mainz starlet Brajan Gruda.
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