After securing Champions League football, Union Berlin are in the market to strengthen their defence and according to Kicker, have begun talks to sign Fenerbahçe’s Attila Szalai.
There is strong interest coming from the Bundesliga club with the possibility of losing Danilho Doekhi to Napoli, as the Italian champions have identified the Dutchman as a replacement for Kim-Min jae who is expected to complete a €50m move to Bayern Munich imminently.
Although initial talks are underway to sign Szalai, Fenerbahçe’s €20m valuation of the Hungarian defender may prove too much for Union, despite qualifying for the Champions League. Josip Juranovic’s €8.55m arrival from Celtic last summer is the highest fee that Die Eisernen have paid for a player, and so the €20m that Fenerbahçe value Szalai is a significant figure for the club.
With a market value of €13m, Szalai has a contract at Fenerbahçe until 2025. The 25-year-old has played 117 games across all competitions for the Turkish side, scoring seven and creating four. His performances attracted interest from Chelsea in 2021.
GGFN | Daniel Pinder
