Trossard to Besiktas: Arsenal confirm £17m agreement, Belgian in Istanbul for his medical
Arsenal have officially confirmed on their own site an agreement with Besiktas for Leandro Trossard's transfer: £17m in total. The Belgian has flown to Istanbul for his medical and to sign.
This time it isn’t a rumour: it comes from Arsenal themselves. The club published a statement on arsenal.com on Tuesday titled “Terms agreed with Besiktas for Trossard transfer”, confirming an agreement with the Turkish side for Leandro Trossard’s permanent transfer. The Belgian flew to Istanbul shortly afterwards.
What is confirmed
- Arsenal have officially confirmed the agreement with Besiktas, on their own website — as reliable as sourcing gets on a transfer.
- The fee: £17m in total, i.e. £15.3m guaranteed plus £1.7m in add-ons (the equivalent of the €20m reported in Turkey). The figure matches exactly what Fabrizio Romano had been reporting since July 12.
- Trossard has been given permission to travel: Besiktas announced his arrival at Atatürk Airport at 7.30pm local time (5.30pm UK), for a medical and signing.
- A three-year contract is reported in Turkey.
- Per Romano, Besiktas have completed the agreement with both the player and his agent — the personal side, which had dragged for a fortnight, is settled.
- The departure concerns a 31-year-old entering the final year of his contract (2027).
What is not settled yet
- The medical and the signature. Until they are done, the transfer is not complete: a confirmed agreement is not an official announcement.
- The detail of the personal terms (exact wages, bonuses) has not been disclosed.
- The date of the definitive announcement.
Context: what Arsenal lose, and what it unlocks
Trossard leaves the Emirates after 174 appearances and 36 goals in three and a half years. His final season, the title-winning one, brought 8 goals and 11 assists in 50 games — the output of a luxury impact player rather than a starter, which is what he had become.
The corollary is immediate, and it explains the tempo: this exit frees up the left flank. Within hours of the statement, Arsenal made official contact with Club Brugge over Christos Tzolis (~€41m), reported by two sources and corroborated by Romano, who describes a plan to “immediately accelerate”. A note of caution though: this is a first formal contact, not a bid. Romano also clarifies the shape of Arsenal’s attacking plan — Tzolis would be the quality backup on the wing, with the club simultaneously chasing a top-class winger, Morgan Rogers still leading the shortlist.
Sources & reliability
| Source | Reliability | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Arsenal.com (official statement) | OFFICIAL (100) | 14/07/2026 |
| Sky Sports | VERY RELIABLE (85) | 14/07/2026 |
| Fabrizio Romano | VERY RELIABLE (90) | 14/07/2026 |
| Goal.com | RELIABLE | 14/07/2026 |
| OneFootball | RELIABLE | 14/07/2026 |
| Sports Mole | RELIABLE | 14/07/2026 |
GG’s analysis
For two weeks we tracked this one in the conditional, repeating “clubs agreed, but the player hasn’t decided”. Arsenal’s statement ends that exercise. And note the timing: the club waited for Belgium’s World Cup to finish before closing it, exactly as advertised.
On the substance, £17m for a 31-year-old a year from the end of his contract is clean business. Trossard was no longer a starter, and Arsenal recover a fee that was far from guaranteed given his age and the run-down deal. The pang remains, because this man scored goals that mattered: 17 of his 27 Premier League goals either equalised or put Arsenal ahead. You don’t replace that with an accounting line.
Which leaves the real question: Tzolis as backup, fine — but when does the starter on the left actually arrive? Rogers at £130m, Álvarez with a €500m clause hanging over him, Barcola just declared unavailable by PSG… The slot is free. It isn’t filled.