Fenerbahce have blamed Saudi Arabian club Al-Ittihad for the collapse of a proposed deal to sign France midfielder N’Golo Kante.
In a statement, the Turkish club said it had fulfilled all its obligations in the transfer, which was structured as a swap deal involving Morocco striker Youssef En-Nesyri moving in the opposite direction.
Fenerbahce added that agreements had already been reached with the players involved.
As reported by BBC Sport on Tuesday, the club said Kante had completed his medical examinations and that all required steps on their part were carried out “completely and on time”.
However, Fenerbahce claimed the deal failed due to an error by Al-Ittihad in the FIFA Transfer Matching System (TMS), which prevented the transaction from being completed before the transfer registration deadline.
“Due to the opposing club’s incorrect entry of the relevant Transfer Matching System information, the transactions could not be completed within the transfer registration period, independently of our club,” the statement said.
Fenerbahce added that they requested an extension to finalise the transfer and held discussions with FIFA, insisting that every effort was made to resolve the issue.
“Despite this, the opposing club has not completed the transactions without providing any justification to us.
“As a result of these developments, the transfer process unfortunately could not be finalised,” the statement continued.
BBC Sport has contacted Al-Ittihad for comment.
The failed deal comes amid changes at Al-Ittihad, with France striker Karim Benzema having left the club earlier this week to join Saudi Pro League rivals Al-Hilal. It had been expected that En-Nesyri could replace Benzema at Al-Ittihad as part of the agreement.
Kante, 34, joined Al-Ittihad from Chelsea in 2023 after a highly successful career in England, where he won the Champions League, Premier League, Europa League and FA Cup with Chelsea, as well as the Premier League title with Leicester City in the 2015–16 season.
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