Saïss Was Looking For His Replacement For The Transfer Market – “If You Find It, We’ll Take It”

Wanted to leave Besiktas 2023

Romain Saïss had to be creative in order to be able to initiate his departure of Besiktas in 2023. The 35-year-old defender ran 26 times for the 16-fold champions of Süper Lig in the 2022/23 season before going to Al-Sadd in Qatar for 2.5 million euros. Actually, the Moroccan wanted to leave the Turks after only half a year and back to the island. At the time, Saïss had to find his possible successor personally for this project.

“When I was still playing for Besiktas, I received an offer from Nottingham Forest in winter. I told you that I wanted to go back to the Premier League. I was very committed to going to Forest, but I didn’t want Besiktas to go,” said Saïss at “Le Club of 5”. The club had reported back that there would be problems finding players. And a converted candidate did not want to switch to the Istanbulers.

“In order to be able to leave Besiktas, I had to find a replacement for myself,” said Saïss. “They told me: ‘If you find him, let’s take him.'” Said. In the style of a sports director, he started the challenge. “I picked up the phone, went to the transfer market and searched for left -footed players who had no big opportunities,” said the veteran. “I sent the players I found to the sports director. I was looking for mediocre players who played in good leagues. I took on the role of the scout,” said Saïss.

In the end, the defenseman struggled unsuccessfully. The transfer window Castle and Saïss was inevitable at Besiktas. “Two to three days later I came to training and saw that a new player was bought. Then I learned that his name was Omar Colley. He was the player they wanted to get but didn’t want to come. I had never seen him, I didn’t know what he looked. When he told me that he was a defender, it was as if I was falling out of the tenth floor, ”Saïss described his horror.

Sayed Colley came from Sampdoria in early February 2023 for EUR 2.3 million and was from now on 46 times before the gambier moved on to PAOK Saloniki in the summer of 2024. The 83-time international and two-time World Cup participant Saïss played most of the games in his career for Wolverhampton (206 games), in the past two years he ran for Al-Sadd (11) and Al-Shabab (28).