Chelsea transfer news: Turkish club to loan David Datro Fofana?

Having spent 2023-24 on loan at Union Berlin and Burnley, Fofana's future was up in the air when returning back to his parent club with a new head coach in charge.

However, it quickly became apparent that Enzo Maresca would not include the forward in his plans for the new season, leading to the Ivorian being exiled from the squad.

Despite interest in his signature from a wide array of different leagues, Fofana remained at Stamford Bridge past the August 30 deadline that was in place for the vast majority of European leagues.

That left a transfer to either Greece or Turkey as his most realistic options, AEK Athens at one stage appearing to be the chosen destination.

On Wednesday evening, though, it was widely claimed that a loan deal to the Greek side had broken down after a disagreement over several parts of the proposal that was on the table.

Fofana on his way to Turkey

With the Greek transfer window having closed on the same day, it has left Chelsea needing to identify an option in the Turkish Super Lig before their own deadline of Friday.

According to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, Fofana will be making the switch to Goztepe SK on a season-long loan deal.

There will allegedly be a recall clause that can be activated in January, likely to suit Chelsea's desire to send Fofana to a bigger club if an opportunity arises.

Goztepe also possess an option to buy. While the figure has not been stated, Chelsea wanted to include a £20m clause in their negotiations with AEK.

What is the current state of play at Goztepe?

Fofana will be joining a team in Goztepe that are in their first season back in Super Lig after a second-placed finish in the TFF First League during the last campaign.

Goz Goz have made an encouraging start to the season, accumulating six points from four matches through three successive draws and a win over Bodrumspor.

One of the draws in question was at home to Jose Mourinho's Fenerbahce, who currently sit at the top of the standings.

Striker Romulo has scored twice in four starts thus far, with Fofana likely viewed as a direct alternative to Southampton loanee Juan who started alongside Romulo in the previous game.