JAKARTA - N'Golo Kante's transfer to Fenerbahce will be completed soon after Al Ittihad finally agreed to release him on Tuesday, February 3, 2026, local time.
The deal almost fell apart when the Turkish club blamed Al Ittihad for the failure of the transfer on the same day.
Fenerbahce said the deal - which involved Moroccan striker Youssef En-Nesyri moving in the opposite direction - was initially unable to be implemented due to an administrative error by the Saudi club.
"Due to the error in filling in the relevant TMS (Transfer Matching System) information by the opposing club, the procedure could not be completed within the transfer registration period, for reasons beyond the control of our club."
"Contract extensions have been requested, the necessary discussions have been carried out by our club with FIFA. All steps have been taken to complete the process."
"Nevertheless, during the ongoing process, the opposing club (Al Ittihad) failed to complete the procedure without giving us any reason," read Fenerbahce's statement, adding that they had carefully noted every detail.
As is known, the use of FIFA TMS is mandatory for all international transfers.
However, Al-Ittihad later uploaded a farewell message on X, saying that they agreed to sell the remaining period of Kante's contract. This means that the administrative issues in TMS have been resolved and the transfer agreement has been resumed.
The 34-year-old, who joined Al Ittihad in 2023, recently returned to the France National Team and recorded his 65th appearance for Les Bleus in November 2025 in a 4-0 win against Ukraine.
Meanwhile, Fenerbahce are chasing their first Turkish League (Super Lig) title in 12 years. In the transfer window, they also signed another French player, midfielder Matteo Guendouzi, who hopes to regain a place in Les Bleus ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
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