Manchester United’s 29-year-old centre-back Eric Bailly is closing in on a move to the Turkish giants Besiktas.
According to Fırat Günayer, Besiktas’s priority is to acquire the services of Eric Bailly as they look to bolster their defence. The 28-year-old has been on their radar for a while now and they are looking to complete the signing by this week.
The Turkish giants have been looking to sign a new defender for weeks now. They shortlisted close to eight defenders in the initial phase but managed to narrow it down to Fluminense’s skipper Nino and Manchester United’s Bailly.
According to Gunayer, the 29-year-old United centre-back is their priority and the Turkish club’s manager has said that Bailly’s arrival is the most likely outcome. Besiktas have been in talks with Manchester United for a while now and they are looking to complete the signing as soon as possible.
Bailly joined Manchester United back in the summer of 2016 from Villarreal. In the initial years, he had a very important role in their first team. But, over time things changed and he started going down the pecking order.
The 29-year-old is no longer an important part of the United setup. He was surplus to requirements last season. As a result, the Ivory Coast defender spent the season out on loan at Marseille. While he was involved in 23 matches, the United defender was on the pitch for less than 900 minutes.
He returned to his parent club after the end of the 2022-23 season. Ever since his return, his future has been uncertain. And, with his contract running out in less than 12 months, the Red Devils are looking to cash in on him.
There has been interest in his services from Besiktas throughout the summer. And, now the Turkish club have started making big moves to land him at the club by this week. The 29-year-old might not have been in the best of forms of late but he still has quite a few years of football left in him and his experience will surely help the cause of the club.
