Newcastle United and Aston Villa wasted no time getting their scouts back in action with the return of football this week.
It is a matter of days until the Premier League is back, but across Europe, many leagues have already kicked off their domestic season.
With the transfer window still open until the end of August, it gives scouts and recruitment teams a chance to get one final look at potential targets.
Newcastle United and Aston Villa are both in the market for a new forward this summer and they were quick to fly their scouts out to Turkey last week to assess a target.
As revealed by HITC, Arsenal, Liverpool and Newcastle all set their sights on Turkish forward Baris Alper Yilmaz this summer after his impressive Euro 2024 campaign.
Yilmaz was spotted in London amid rumours of a move to the Premier League, but no deal has been struck.
Newcastle United and Aston Villa scouts in action
According to Turkish outlet ABC Gazetesi, scouts from Villa and Newcastle were present for Galatasaray’s 2-1 win over Hatayspor in the Turkish Super League on Friday evening.
The report claims the Premier League duo were there to watch Yilmaz in action as they weigh up a move for the 24-year-old Turkish forward.
Yilmaz started on the left wing for Galatasaray in a front three alongside Mauro Icardi and Hakim Ziyech. He played the full 90 minutes of the league clash, which saw the Turkish champions come back from a goal down to win 2-1.
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Galatasaray assistant manager Selcuk Inan has previously backed Yilmaz to impress in the Premier League.
“Baris Alper Yilmaz, I think, can play very easily in many teams in the Premier League right now,” Inan said. “He is a very special player. We worked hard with him.”
Aston Villa eye Turkey targets
Villa have their eyes on Yilmaz, but it is not the only target in Turkey they are watching.
HITC revealed that Aston Villa and Tottenham have been made aware of Wilfried Zaha’s situation with the Galatasaray winger keen to move back to England.
Villa have also shown an interest in Turkish youngster Semih Kilicsoy with reports that they even made an offer for the 18-year-old.
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