Galatasaray strike deal to appoint ex Juventus defender Igor Tudor as manager

Igor Tudor - Galatasaray

Galatasaray have struck a deal with former Juventus and Croatia national team defender Igor Tudor which will see him take charge of the Istanbul giants on a 1.5 year deal, a source close to the club revealed to Turkish-Football.com.

Tudor was manager of Karabukspor who are currently 10th in the Turkish league.

See More: For everything you ever wanted to know about Galatasaray

Karabukspor president Ferudun Tankut was outraged with Galatasaray and Tudor following the agreement.

Tankut accused the Lions and Tudor of conspiring against Karabukspor.

“Galasaray invaded, carpet bombed us and took Igor Tudor. I will never speak to Igor again,” Tankut was quoted as saying by Hurriyet.

“We will be complaining to the Turkish Football Federation, nobody contracted us first so how can this be allowed.”

Tudor was appointed Karabukspor manager last summer and has achieved impressive results working on a limited budget beating both Fenerbahce and Galatasaray over recent weeks.

The 38-year-old coach played for Juventus and the Croatia national team as a player before moving into management in 2013.

Tudor enjoyed stints at Hadjuk Split and PAOK before joining Karabukspor.

Galatasaray fired Jan Olde Riekerink yesterday despite the Dutch head coach guiding his side to third place in the league.

The Istanbul giants were just five points behind league leaders Besiktas but were coming off the back of an embarrassing 2-1 defeat against Kayserispor over the weekend.

The Lions also recently bowed out of the Turkish Cup following a 2-1 defeat against Basaksehir.

Galatasaray are currently only competing in the Super Lig as they are banned from European competition this season after failing to meet UEFA’s Financial Fair Play rules.

The Lions will however, return to European competition if they finish in the top four this season.

A top-two spot would guarantee a place in the Champions League while a top-four and potentially a top-five finish – depending on who wins the Turkish Cup – could secure a spot in the Europa League.