Everton midfielder Dele Alli has officially joined Besiktas on a loan transfer, the Super Lig outfit have an option to buy.
Alli was officially unveiled as a Besiktas player on Thursday, putting pen to paper on his new deal and posing in the club shirt.
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The England international was welcomed like a hero by Besiktas fans at Istanbul airport after arriving in Turkey.
Alli thanked the fans that turned up to greet him on his official Twitter account with a message written in English and Turkish.
Thank you for the amazing reception @Besiktas ? I’m very happy to be here and cannot wait to get started ?
Bu muhtesem karsilama icin tesekkurler @Besiktas ? Burada oldugum icin cok mutluyum ve bir an evvel sahaya cikmak icin sabirsizlaniyorum ? pic.twitter.com/8EGEYID6NT
— Dele (@dele_official) August 25, 2022
Speaking to Besiktas’ official website, he said: “It’s my first time playing for a club abroad but since I arrived, the feeling has been amazing. The passion I can already feel around the place is amazing.
“I’m excited to get started and get going, it’s a new challenge for me and one that I’m looking forward to. I spoke to a couple of the players before coming here, I spoke to the manager as well and it’s only been positive things said so far. I’m happy to be here and the energy from the fans when I arrived was amazing.”
Alli struggled for playing time at Everton but is likely to slot right into the Besiktas team as a starter.
The Black Eagles got their season off to a good start winning seven points from a maximum nine in their first three games.
Besiktas will face Sivasspor on Monday 29 August at home, Alli could make his debut.
Everton manager Frank Lampard reacted to the transfer revealing that he believes it is the right move for Alli.
Speaking in a press conference ahead of his side’s Premier League showdown with Brentford, he said: “I think it’s the right thing. I think it hasn’t worked out for Dele here for different reasons and he can go there now and hopefully play games, have success, help in person and help us and we’ll review it through the year and obviously at the end of the season.”
Asked if there is a route back into the first-team come the conclusion of the loan spell, Lampard replied: “Yes, that’s what the deal is so we’ll see how it goes.”
