Fenerbahce have emerged as front runners in the race to sign Jack Wilshere, sources close to the club have told ESPN FC.
Wilshere is now a free agent after his 17-year Arsenal career officially came to an end on Saturday when his contract expired and he has had no shortage of interest from the Premier League and across Europe.
There is no agreement in place yet but talks are at an advanced stage and the club have asked for a final decision as soon as possible.
Fenerbahce have held talks with Wilshere’s representatives and made a formal offer, according to ESPN FC sources. Damien Comolli, the club’s sporting director, has been leading negotiations and is prepared to offer a four-year deal worth €4 million each season.
The Turkish club have been working on convincing the midfielder to make the switch, including offering an attractive sign-on fee, but have a few concerns especially as Wilshere has never played abroad and would have to uproot his family to move to Istanbul.
Comolli has been working on convincing the former Arsenal man to chose Fener, emphasising the club’s new vision following Ali Koc winning the recent presidential election.
Koc was elected in a landslide ballot of club members, winning 16,092 of the votes compared to 4,644 for Aziz Yildirim.
Fenerbahce finished last season as runners-up and will have to navigate past a tricky qualifying campaign to book a place in the Champions League group stage.
New manager Phillip Cocu aims to conduct his summer transfer business early in preparation for the European campaign.
Wilshere would become the second Arsenal player from their 2009 Youth FA Cup-winning side to move to the Super Lig. Oghuzhan Ozyakup parted ways with the North London outfit five years ago to join Besiktas where he has gone onto win two Super Lig titles.
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