Galatasaray are plotting a move for Sporting Lisbon defender Merih Demiral, sources close to the Super Lig outfit revealed to Turkish-Football.
The Lions made Sporting an enquiry to Sporting regarding his availability over the winter transfer window.
The Istanbul based outfit are planning to reinvest some of the €12m fee Stuttgart paid for Ozan Kabak earlier in the week.
Galatasaray are keen on signing Demiral on a permanent move but that would only be possible if Sporting recall the defender from loan at Alanyaspor.
Currently, a January move looks unlikely but the Lions would be prepared to wait until the end of the season to snap up the 1.93m tall centre-back.
Galatasaray could however, face competition from Manchester United.
Turkish-Football reported that the Red Devils have been scouting Demiral since his time in Portugal.
Statistics site Whoscored rate Demiral as the second best defender in the league – now that Manuel Da Costa has left Basaksehir for Al-Ittihad he is the highest ranked centre-back in the league.
The Alanyaspor loanee has made 14 starts and scored one goal for the Mediterranean based side this season.
The powerful 1.92m tall defender models himself on former United legend Nemanja Vidic.
Demiral recently told the Tam Saha magazine: “When I was young I always followed Nemanja Vidic at Manchester United. I used to watch clips of him on the internet. He’s still my idol even if he has retired. He was brave, a warrior, never gave up and was a true leader.”
