The agent of Turkey defender Zeki Celik has confirmed interest from a number of major European clubs amid reported interest from Premier League giants Arsenal and Tottenham, while speaking to Tuttomercatoweb.
While Italy can probably be considered pedigree stallions heading into Friday night’s Euro 2020 opener in Rome, Roberto Mancini and co will be wary of the darkest of dark horses.
Boasting a trio of players who shone en route to Lille’s first Ligue 1 title since a fresh-faced Eden Hazard was hot-stepping his way to Stamford Bridge, this is perhaps the finest Turkey team since the one which stormed to the World Cup semi-finals in 2002 – coincidentally, during current coach Senol Gunes’ first spell at the helm.
Rampaging right-back Celik may be one of the breakout stars of the entire tournament too, especially if he takes his stellar club form onto the international stage.
L’Equipe reported a fortnight ago that Tottenham are watching the 24-year-old closely as Serge Aurier pushes for a return to PSG, while Arsenal are also in the market for a Hector Bellerin replacement (Standard).
Should Celik enhance his reputation further in front of the watching world, don’t be surprised if a big-money transfer is in the offing.
“He has interest from the big players in Europe, it’s true,” said his agent, Fazil Ozdemir.
“Should a great offer arrive then we would sit down with Lille to talk about it. He was a key player for the title win.”
Everton have been linked with Celik on a number of occasions.
And with the Toffees scouring the market for a long-term Seamus Coleman successor, this is certainly a space worth watching.
Interestingly, Celik also admitted that he was aware of interest from Tottenham in October 2020, while insisting that he was ‘attracted‘ by the prospect of a move across the channel.
Lille were crowned Ligue 1 champions in May but their title-winning squad looks set to fall apart like wet tissue paper. Boubakary Soumare is heading to Leicester City while influential manager Cristophe Galtier is also expected to depart.
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