The President of Galatasaray, Erden Timur, has acknowledged that Sofyan Amrabat came very close to joining his squad before his transfer to Manchester United.
Amrabat was a target for the Red Devils for a significant amount during the summer transfer season. According to reports, Liverpool and Galatasaray were among the teams who showed interest in the youngster. The Turkish team was reportedly extremely close to landing him.
On the last day of the transfer window, Manchester United paid €10 million to acquire the Moroccan international. At the conclusion of the season, they will have the opportunity to make the transfer permanent for €25 million.
Amrabat is familiar with working alongside Erik ten Hag because of their time spent studying together in Utrecht, the Netherlands. This season, he has not participated in a competitive match for Fiorentina or Manchester United.
Recently, Sofyan Amrabat reflected on the time they spent together while playing in the Eredivisie and the influence Erik ten Hag had on his professional life.
After graduating from Utrecht’s youth academy, the Moroccan midfielder started playing regularly for Ten Hag in the 2015–16 campaign. He participated in 50 games for the Dutchman over the course of two seasons.
Amrabat spoke on the club’s website during his first interview since joining Manchester United, and said, “It was very important because I was very young. I was 18, 19 years old, and he gave me the chance to play in the first team with Utrecht. We had a fantastic time, a really good season. I learned a lot from him. So maybe he’s one of the most important people in my career for now.”
For organisations like Feyenoord, Hellas Verona, and Fiorentina, Amrabat has been a trustworthy defensive midfielder. But it was his performance in the Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup that truly caught teams’ attention.
Amrabat participated in every one of the Atlas Lions’ seven games as they achieved a record-breaking fourth-place result, the highest ever for an African country in a competition.
