Sunderland have been credit with an interest in Galatasaray star Roland Sallai
For his part, Sallai joined Galatasaray from SC Freiburg in September 2024 and has since become a regular in Istanbul. Although primarily deployed at right-back, he has also featured on the opposite flank and in more advanced wide roles on occasion, racking up seven goals and seven assists across 64 outings thus far. The 28-year-old has 64 senior international caps to his name too, with 15 goals.
It is claimed that Sunderland made “serious attempts” to lure Sallai to Wearside this winter, but ultimately fell short in their efforts. Elsewhere, Liverpool - who were in the market for a right-back following injuries to both Conor Bradley and Jeremie Frimpong - are also understood to have identified the Galatasaray star as a potential option. Of course, the defending Premier League champions failed with an attempt to prise Black Cats loanee Lutsharel Geertruida away from the Stadium of Light last month as well.
And in a fresh update, A Spor suggest that fellow top flight outfit Brentford are now plotting a raid for Sallai at the end of the current campaign, with the continental publication stating that an offer is in the works. For their part, Galatsaray are supposedly open to trimming their squad this summer as part of a financial restructuring, but is unclear at this stage as to how much they would demand for the defender, or if Sunderland will look to revive their own interest under Director of Football Florent Ghisolfi.
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What has Roland Sallai said about his future at Galatasaray?
Any club looking to sign Sallai in the near future may face something of an uphill battle, however - especially if recent comments from the player himself are to be taken at face value.
Just this month, the Hungarian told BeIN Sport that he is fully committed to Galatasaray’s cause in Istanbul, and that he is wholly content with his current situation in the Turkish capital.
He said: "It is important that we stay motivated in the championship, that is why these three points were important. We won confidently, we have to continue like this. I am 100% focused on Galatasaray, I am very happy at the club.”
Sallai’s comments echo the sentiments that he expressed when he first signed for his current employers, telling the media: “I'm so happy to be here. I believe we can do good things together. We aim to win the league and win the cup in Europe. I know a lot about fans, I can't wait to be with them in our stadium.”
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