The Italiano era at Beşiktaş: the purse strings loosen

Beşiktaş have stepped into a new era with Italian coach Vincenzo Italiano, appointed to the managerial role vacated by Sergen Yalçın. According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, the 48-year-old, during talks with the Black-and-Whites, requested a large €150 million transfer budget to prepare the squad for a title challenge.

Italiano, who won the Coppa Italia with Bologna in 2024-25 after a 51-year wait, had caught the attention of all of Europe with his aggressive, high-tempo, attack-focused football. Beşiktaş's board, looking to close the gap on Galatasaray and Fenerbahçe and rejoin the title race, promised the Italian both a large transfer budget and an ambitious squad. It was reported the manager signed a two-year deal with the club worth €6 million net per season — exactly double what he earned at Bologna. With targets such as the league title and Champions League qualification, that figure could rise to €8 million with bonuses. A separate budget of €2.5 million per season was also set aside for his coaching staff.

Acting on Italiano's report, Beşiktaş have turned especially to the Italian market in their transfer work. According to claims in the Italian press, the Black-and-Whites have set their sights on Riccardo Orsolini — the former pupil who broke a scoring record under him at Bologna — as well as midfielders Arthur Melo and Douglas Luiz, who are not in Juventus' plans, and goalkeeper Michele Di Gregorio. Genoa's Danish midfielder Morten Frendrup and Arsenal's Belgian winger Leandro Trossard have also been named as targets. The board are also said to have made a high-salary offer to out-of-contract Serbian striker Dusan Vlahovic.

For Beşiktaş, football director Önder Özen said at Italiano's signing ceremony that a total of seven reinforcements would be added to the squad. President Serdal Adalı described the Italian as "a rising name in European football" and stressed that their goals aligned. All of this shows that Beşiktaş are determined to build an ambitious squad this window and, with the budget Italiano requested, aim to challenge for the title next season.

Source: La Gazzetta dello Sport
Image: NTV Spor