As usual, there has been hectic activity in the transfer market on Deadline Day. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Besiktas have the luxury of having their transfer window in the Süper Liga closed over a week later. This opened up for the signing of a Norwegian national team player on exit, several Turkish media and TV 2 reported that efforts were being made to persuade Solskjaer’s former Molde player. The window of opportunity was slammed shut on Monday.
Leo Østigård played for Solskjaer as a teenager and is now considered a key player by Solskjaer for the Norwegian national team. Besiktas need a leader type like the centre-back with rounds at Napoli and then this summer at chaos club Rennes, but Østigård chose the German door.
National team manager Ståle Solbakken went to great lengths in an interview with Viaplay by saying that Leo Østigård should change clubs as soon as possible. When it became clear that Rennes were willing to spend almost twice as much on a direct competitor to Leo’s place, it was clear something was going on.
The choice surprisingly fell on a loan stay at Hoffenheim, a relegation candidate in the Bundesliga.
“With Leo, we have found a defender with the qualities we were looking for in the winter window,” says a very satisfied sporting director Andreas Schicker to Hoffenheim’s website.
Sorry, Ole Gunnar.
