Filip Kostic’s time at Juventus has come to an end. The 31-year-old is leaving the Old Lady and joining Fenerbahce on loan. The Istanbul club are also said to have an option to buy him.
Now it’s official: On Monday evening, Fenerbahce announced the transfer on the social media platform “X”, which had been hinted at in recent days. Filip Kostic is joining the Turkish first division club on loan and, according to media reports, the Istanbul club also have an option to buy.
On Sunday, Fenerbahce published a picture of Kostic in Istanbul on his way to the medical check on their website. This went accordingly smoothly
Top performances in Frankfurt
Kostic first made a name for himself in the Bundesliga, where he played for VfB Stuttgart, HSV and Frankfurt. He probably had his strongest time at Eintracht, where he not only became a crowd favourite as a speed dribbler with dangerous crosses, but also contributed to SGE winning the Europa League in 2022 (5:4 in the final against Glasgow Rangers); in the same year, he was also named Player of the Season in the Europa League by UEFA.
This was followed by a less than romantic move to Juventus in Italy, where the Serbian international (64 caps) initially impressed. He was a regular in his first season, but found himself on the bench more often last season and was substituted in 23 of 29 Serie A games – although he did win the Coppa Italia (1:0 against Atalanta Bergamo).
In addition to defensive weaknesses, the 31-year-old also missed the European Championships in Germany due to a knee ligament injury
No place under Thiago Motta
After a disappointing season for the Turin side, who finished third in the final table, Juve have started to rebuild their squad under new coach Thiago Motta – and this should take place without Kostic.
It had been clear for weeks that the Serbian would struggle to get enough playing time. This was one of the reasons why there were repeated rumors of an imminent transfer. In addition to the now obligatory speculation about a possible move to Saudi Arabia, Galatasaray in Turkey was considered the most likely destination.
Turkey has now also become the most likely destination, albeit not Galatasaray, but Fenerbahce and its charismatic and polarizing new coach José Mourinho. At the Canaries, Kostic is hoping to breathe new life into his faltering career. The fact that he will meet his former national team colleague Dusan Tadic (35), among others, at Fener should help him
