ISTANBUL (AP) – Fenerbahce has completed the transfer of World Cup winner N’Golo Kante, whose arrival at the Turkish club was delayed due to administrative issues.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Fenerbahce chairman Sadettin Saran on Wednesday thanked Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan “for the tremendous support he has provided to ensure a positive conclusion to this process.”
Kante joined from Al Ittihad of the Saudi Professional League.
The deal appeared to all but disappear after Al Ittihad blamed Fenerbahce for the transfer collapse on Tuesday. Fenerbahce said the deal initially did not go through due to mismanagement on the part of the Saudi Arabian club.
However, Al Ittihad later posted a farewell message to X, saying they had agreed to “sell the remaining term” of Kante’s contract.
The 34-year-old Kante, who joined Al Ittihad in 2023, recently returned to the French national team and made his 65th appearance for Les Bleus in a 4-0 win against Ukraine in November. Kante won the World Cup with France in 2018.
Fenerbahce are aiming to win the Turkish league for the first time in 12 years. In the transfer market, they also acquired French national team midfielder Matteo Guendouzi, and are hoping to regain his place in the national team ahead of the World Cup.
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