DIEGO SIMEONE CONFIRMS ATLETICO MADRID TRANSFER FOR LEICESTER CITY DEFENDER
Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone has confirmed the Spanish giants will sign Caglar Soyuncu this summer.
The Turkey international will leave Leicester City on a free transfer following relegation from the Premier League in order to secure his dream of playing for a club in the Champions League.
Speaking to El Partidazo de COPE, Simeone confirmed the move, as translated by transfer expert Fabrizio Romano.
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“Soyüncü will join us, yes — he’s gonna help in the defence”, he told Cope. “Santiago Mourino will also join (from Racing Club de Montevideo), we will see him in the preseason. We have good expectations”.
Souyuncu's move comes as no surprise with a switch to Spain long since in the pipeline for the central defender, who fell out of favour under Brendan Rodgers but was brought back into the side at the end of the season under Dean Smith.
In April, LeicestershireLive's Jordan Blackwell noted that a late contract offer from City had been rebuffed.
He wrote: "While it may look like his departure is a direct result of him being sidelined by Brendan Rodgers, only coming back into the team now Dean Smith is in charge, that’s not the case. Soyuncu has been wanting to move to a Champions League club for the best part of two years.
"Just as with Youri Tielemans, City are losing a valuable player for nothing, indicating that they should have sold him last summer, even if they thought he was moving on for less than he was worth.
"Earlier this season, City then tried to open contract talks with Soyuncu, but it was a futile attempt. The deal was never going to be signed. He had no interest in staying.
"Atletico have been sniffing around for a while, but there was some doubt over a potential move to the Spanish club around January, when they were concerned by his lack of minutes and were seeking other options. They’ve now come back to the Turk and provided they earn nine points from their final seven La Liga games, he will be playing Champions League football next term."
With one match left of the season, Atletico have secured a third place finish in La Liga. They could overtake rivals Real Madrid on the final day if results go their way.
How should Soyuncu be remembered as a Leicester City player? Have your say in the comments section below
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2023-06-02T07:58:40Z dg43tfdfdgfd