Merih Demiral looks set to depart Atalanta and complete a move to Saudi Pro League side Al-Ahli, this is after the two clubs reached an agreement for the player to make the move to the Middle East.
The Turkish defender, who was also linked with a move to the Premier League, is set to move to Matthias Jaissle’s Al-Ahli.
According to Fabrizio Romano, the deal to take the defender to the Saudi Pro League side is at the ‘here we go’ stage. According to the tweet by Romano, there’s an agreement on the player’s side and indeed the club-to-club agreement has also been reached.
The defender will sign his contract with the Saudi side in the next 24 hours.
Massive boost for the Saudi side
After already completing the signing of Roger Ibanez from Roma, the signing of another defender from the Serie A is sure to improve the spine of the team.
Demiral is another old-school defender but one that could well be crucial for the Saudi side going forward into the new season. Following the ambitious signings of Allan Saint-Maximin, Roberto Firmino and Riyad Mahrez, the Saudi side needs that defensive solidity, and Ibanez and Demiral may well be exactly that.
The fee that Al-Ahli will pay for the Turkish defender remains unknown and that will be crucial to knowing whether this is a good deal or not for the Middle Eastern side hoping to be involved in the title race this season.
According to the same tweet by Romano, Premier League clubs were interested in the defender but it does not say who the English sides were but interestingly, Al-Ahli only matched the financials that were on offer from these two Premier League sides but the defender decided that a move to the Middle East was better for his career. This perhaps highlights the growing quality of the division.