The Turkish Football Federation (TFF) is reportedly close to appointing Sergen Yalçın as the new head coach of the national football team following the departure of Vincenzo Montella.
As reported by İdman.Biz, citing Turkish newspaper Sabah, the federation has reached an agreement with the 53-year-old coach, who has accepted an official offer to take charge of the national side.
The search for Montella's successor initially led the TFF to Arda Turan. However, the 39-year-old coach expressed his desire to continue working with Ukrainian club Shakhtar Donetsk, prompting the federation to consider other candidates.
Samet Aybaba and Abdullah Avcı were also included on the shortlist before the TFF ultimately decided to appoint a Turkish specialist and settled on Yalçın, whose most recent coaching job was at Beşiktaş.
The federation is expected to officially announce Yalçın's appointment today, October 20. The experienced manager is scheduled to travel to the TFF headquarters in Riva to attend the contract-signing ceremony.
However, one of the most remarkable details of the negotiations was Yalçın's attitude toward his potential salary.
According to Sabah, the former Beşiktaş coach made no financial demands during preliminary discussions with federation officials.
"We are talking about the national team... I wouldn't even consider making any demands regarding money," Yalçın reportedly said.
The 53-year-old previously enjoyed considerable success at Beşiktaş, guiding the Istanbul giants to both the Turkish Süper Lig title and the Turkish Cup in the 2020/21 season.
His expected appointment would mark the beginning of a new era for Turkish football, with the federation turning to a domestic coach to lead the national team.
