“This is normally a crime” – Drama around Aston Villa player as higher offer sees court case

Aston Villa signed Nicolò Zaniolo on a loan deal last summer, months after he had joined Galatasaray on a permanent transfer.

The Italy international has struggled for regular minutes this year and was recently subject to criticism by a section of Aston Villa’s supporters. The winger has been in the news both in Italy and Turkey regularly, even when he doesn’t do anything wrong.

According to Türkiye Gazetesi, Galatasaray overcame competition from Fenerbahçe to sign the 24-year-old from AS Roma in January 2023.

They have relayed quotes from Fenerbahçe president Ali Koç, who isn’t pleased with the way in which Galatasaray beat the Yellow Canaries for the Aston Villa man’s signature.

“There is also the Zaniolo issue. A manager of Galatasaray disclosed the offer we made to Zaniolo in a TV show. This is normally a crime. He says, ‘Fenerbahçe gave more, but the player chose us.’ So we took this to court,” he said.

Fotospor state only the fixed fee offered by Fenerbahçe was higher than that of their local rivals. They state Galatasaray paid €15m to the Serie A side, who are entitled to receive a 20% of any profit from his future sale.

Unai Emery’s side reportedly have an obligation to make the attacker’s stay permanent if certain set conditions are met. Recent claims have stated Zaniolo is set to leave Aston Villa and a few Italian clubs are in the picture to sign him in the summer.