Fenerbahçe: Why Abandoned Move for Lookman

Fenerbahçe have revealed why their pursuit of Ademola Lookman collapsed, with Deputy Chairman Murat Salar describing Atalanta’s demand for a financial guarantee as unacceptable.

Speaking on the club’s television channel, Salar explained that the Italian side requested a letter of guarantee during negotiations, but the Turkish giants refused, citing their long-standing principle of never issuing or accepting such documents in transfers.

‘Fenerbahçe Club has not given a letter of guarantee throughout its history and has not received a letter of guarantee. We accepted this as an insult,’ Salar said.

He stressed that the club’s reputation, built over 120 years, should not be placed below that of any bank.

‘If you give a letter of guarantee to one club, this will be required for all future transfers. We did not allow a  mortgage to be placed on Fenerbahçe’s future,’ he added, noting that other major clubs such as Manchester City, PSG and Lazio had never demanded such conditions.

While acknowledging Lookman’s quality and confirming the club’s desire to sign him, Salar insisted that protecting Fenerbahçe’s integrity outweighed the deal.

‘We think that Fenerbahçe’s reputation is higher than that of banks. We gave up on the transfer against this disrespect,’ he concluded.