Former Besiktas vice-president Serhan Cetinsaya has questioned the club’s signing of Eric Bailly from Premier League giants Manchester United while suggesting that more should have been done to lure Sergio Ramos to Turkey.
Cetinsaya resigned from his post in August, one week before Eric Bailly arrived on a free transfer following the termination of his Manchester United contract.
Had the former Besiktas chief still been at the helm during the final few days of the Turkish transfer window, however, Bailly would perhaps still be at Old Trafford, Cetinsaya questioning the decision to snap up the injury-hit Ivorian at a time in which one of the world’s most iconic central defenders was also available on a free transfer.
Eric Bailly leaves Manchester United for Besiktas
“Instead of purchasing (Daniel) Amartey, Bailly and (Jean) Onana, I’d have bought one Sergio Ramos,” Cetinsaya tells Yenicag Gazetesi. “One Ramos is worth two defenders. He still at a very high level at the age of 37.”
Besiktas, Cetinsaya adds, made an ‘offer’ to the four-time Champions League winner, only for Ramos to turn up his nose at a club plying their trade in Europe’s third-tier club competition. The legendary Spaniard eventually secured an emotional return to Sevilla, putting pen to paper on the same day that Bailly touched down in Istanbul.
Ramos, interestingly, was also linked with a shock move to Old Trafford after Erik ten Hag lost Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane to injury.
“We made the first official offer to Ramos on August 3rd. At that time, Galatasaray were also interested. For me, Ramos was a project that would have brought the world’s attention to Besiktas,” Cetinsaya adds.
“(But) Ramos said ‘absolutely no’ to a team playing in the Europa Conference League.”
Injuries and own goals
Bailly’s difficult start to life at Besiktas, meanwhile, will be familiar to those who witnessed his troubled final few years in the red of Manchester United. Bailly, who once set United back an eye-watering £30 million, has been limited to just four appearances due to a shoulder injury, and scored a 90th minute own goal as Lugano came from 2-0 down to triumph at the Vodafone Arena in the Conference League group-stages.
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