12.06.2025 16:30
Former Beşiktaş star Rachid Ghezzal admitted in statements to the French press that Galatasaray wanted to transfer him in the past. In his statement, the star player said, "At 28-29 years old, I received a good contract at the peak of my career. Galatasaray offered more money, but I wanted to stay at Beşiktaş. Because I had written a story there. I signed my best contract."
Former Beşiktaş star Rachid Ghezzal, who plays for Süper Lig team Çaykur Rizespor, made striking statements to the French press. Ghezzal admitted that Galatasaray wanted him in the past.
"I WASN'T KEEN ON GOING TO TURKEY"
Describing the transfer process to Beşiktaş, Ghezzal said, "When I came to Beşiktaş, I wasn't very keen on going to Turkey. Because the previous years had been tough. I went to Turkey on the last day of the transfer period. I was telling myself, 'you are no longer in top leagues.' But Beşiktaş is a big club. There were no fans because it was during the Covid period, but everything on the field was wonderful. I was literally flying." he stated.
"SERGEN YALÇIN WATCHED ME ON YOUTUBE"
Highlighting the influence of head coach Sergen Yalçın in his transfer to the black-and-whites, Ghezzal said, "I didn't come to Beşiktaş as a star player. The coach transferred me through a YouTube video. Sergen Yalçın is a legendary coach. He said, 'Ghezzal, Ghezzal, bring this kid.' He made his decision after watching the video." he expressed.
"GALATASARAY OFFERED MORE MONEY BUT..."
Ghezzal explained the offer made to him by Galatasaray, saying, "At 28-29 years old, at the peak of my career, I received a good contract. Galatasaray offered more money, but I wanted to stay at Beşiktaş. Because I had written a story there. I signed my best contract." he stated.
"I LEARNED IT FROM SOCIAL MEDIA"
Touching on the process of being left out of the squad, the star player said, "A new president came. We were seen as the old management's men. Their first job was to leave us out of the squad. I learned this from social media. It was completely for financial reasons. They thought they could send us directly away. But we had contracts. They caused great harm to the club. I saw 2 presidents and 5-6 head coaches in a year. It was a very bad period." he concluded.