‘They signed me as Salah’s replacement’ – Man City lost out on wonder kid after record Liverpool transfer
Basaksehir wonder kid Cengiz Under was on the verge of a Manchester City move until Roma hijacked the deal with a €15 million offer.
The Istanbul minnows accepted the Italian giants bid and broke the Super Lig transfer record for a Turkish international in the process.
Roma’s move came as a surprise but it turns out that Liverpool played a major role in making the deal happen.
The Serie A outfit made a move for Under once the Reds signed Mohamed Salah for €42m million.
The transfer gave Roma funds to reinvest in a replacement.
See More: Who is Cengiz Under?
Liverpool inadvertently influenced Under’s move to Roma and prevented a rival Premier League side snapping up one of the most highly rated talents in Turkish football.
Under told beIN Turkey: “They signed me as [Mohamed] Salah’s replacement so I am here to play.
“I have made friends with De Rossi, he’s been great to me.”
Under stated that the transfer came as a surprise.
“I could not believe the transfer happened so quickly. We were in other talks [Man City], then I got a call from my agent who said ‘the Roma deal is done’, I couldn’t sleep that night,” he said.
The Turkish international revealed that he needs to learn Italian to really settle in.
“I need to learn Italian, I have started lessons already,” he added.
The 20-year-old also underlined that he has been impressed with the discipline at Roma.
“There is the upmost discipline, we are always working, always developing,” he said.
“We start in the gym, have lunch, train, study, we are always working, there is discipline.
“I love the environment.”
Under became the most expensive Turkish player to leave the Super Lig.
Basaksehir have also included a 20 percent future sale option as part of the deal.
The Istanbul minnows will have to pay 30 percent of the transfer fee back to Altinordu which works out as being €4.5 million.
The Turkish international scored on his debut for Roma in the 2-1 International win over Tottenham