Another sign of the intent that Galatasaray have on becoming one of Europe’s elite teams, on Monday they announced the hiring of Roberto Mancini to replace the sacked Fatih Terim.
Mancini has signed a three-year deal with the Turkish giants worth a reported €3.5m for this season plus an additional €4.5m for each of the next two seasons. The former Man City boss will reportedly earn a €300,000 bonus if the club win the Turkish title and reach the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals.
Defending Turkish champions Galatasaray spent big 18 months ago on the likes of Didier Drogba, Wesley Sneijder, Felipe Melo and Hamit Altintop and that investment paid off with a championship.
But it is a different story this year as Gala are already eight points behind leaders and bitter rivals Fenerbahce after winning just one of their first five league games. They were also thrashed 6-1 at home by Real Madrid in their opening UEFA Champions League group match.
Ironically Maninci’s first game in charge will be against Juventus and former Man City Carlos Tevez, who Mancini had a very rocky relationship with at in England.
