After two and a half seasons at the Saudi club Al-Ittihade, international midfielder and French world champion N’Golo Kanté has signed with Fenerbahçe, the Turkish club announced on Wednesday February 4.
“Some stories take time, but they never end. Welcome to Fenerbahçe, N’Golo Kanté »wrote on X, the Istanbul club, which announced on Tuesday the failure of the transfer, accusing the Saudi club Al-Ittihad of being responsible.
Fenerbahçe, which did not specify the duration of the contract, affirmed in a long press release that the leaders of Al-Ittihad had “entered incorrectly” information relating to the Frenchman’s transfer in the TMS software of the International Football Federation (FIFA), while the transfer window closed in Saudi Arabia.
According to the Turkish press, Kanté, 34, had refused to train on Tuesday to put pressure on his leaders and force his departure to Fenerbahçe, where he had been announced for several weeks. FIFA finally gave the green light to the transfer of the midfielder.
The 2026 World Cup in the viewfinder
The objective of the French international (65 caps), who joins a club involved in the Europa League, is to remain operational in view of the World Cup co-organized by the United States, Mexico and Canada (from June 11 to July 19).
Despite his exile in the Middle East in 2023, “NG” has never lost sight of the Blues. A major architect of the 2018 world title in Russia where he formed a memorable midfield duo with Paul Pogba, the Parisian remained competitive, winning the national title with Al-Ittihad alongside Karim Benzema and under the direction of Laurent Blanc in 2025.
A sign of the credit given to him by coach Didier Deschamps, he was called up for Euro 2024 and immediately regained starting status after two years of absence from the France team.
If his performances had declined in Germany, his experience remains incomparable, an essential fact when embarking on a tournament which promises to be particularly long.
“He is always in my head, in my thoughts. During the season, I may have other objectives, such as giving playing time to younger players to improve, but I know that he is always there, with his technique, and I know that it is always a pleasure for him to come”declared Didier Deschamps when summoning him in November 2025 for the last two qualifying matches for the World Cup.
