Tudor named Galatasaray manager
The Galatasaray coaching carousel keeps on spinning with the Istanbul giant announcing Wednesday the appointment of former Juventus and Croatian international defender Igor Tudor.
Tudor's hiring was revealed with a statement on Galatasaray's website, with the club adding that Tudor, 38, signs a one-and-a-half year deal with the club as Jan Olde Riekerink's successor a day after the Dutchman was sacked on the heels of a dire 2-1 defeat against lowly Kayserispor.
Related: Galatasaray sacks manager Jan Olde Riekerink
A rarity in the football world, Galatasaray's statement also included the financials behind the deal, with the club set to pay €150,000 to fellow Turkish Super Lig side Karabukspor, who Tudor had managed since June 2016. Tudor will make €400,000 for the remainder of the 2016-17 campaign, and €1,000,000 for the following season, with added bonuses for progression in next season's Champions League.
The pressure is now on Tudor to ensure the record 20-time Turkish champ makes its way into the continent's top-tier tournament after the weekend loss failed to see Galatasaray vault local minnow Buyuksehir for second after the Istanbul lot were hammered 4-0 at Kasimpasa on Sunday.
Tudor's hiring should pay immediate dividends from a defensive angle, as the 55-time capped international was known as a rock at the back with Juventus alongside the likes of Lilian Thuram, Nicola Legrottaglie, Gianluca Zambrotta, Jonathan Zebina, Fabio Cannavaro, and current standout Giorgio Chiellini.
Serious injury sidetracked a promising career with Juve, and after making more than 150 appearances for the club as a centre-half, and as a defensive midfielder under Marcello Lippi, Tudor was off to Siena on loan before a return to boyhood club Hajduk Split.
Tudor becomes Galatasaray's eighth manager since the summer of 2014, and the Split-born boss wasted little time after the announcement, running his maiden training session with the club Wednesday.
HEADLINES
- UEL roundup: Leverkusen to face Roma in semis after staying unbeaten
- Aston Villa's Martinez suspended for 1st leg of UECL semis
- Serie A secures extra UCL place, Bundesliga and EPL still in contention
- Atalanta bounce Liverpool as Klopp's final season suffers new blow
- Lille president: Martinez's shootout antics not befitting of high-level athlete