Vlahovic leaves Juventus for Istanbul

Dusan Vlahovic has joined Besiktas, where he will once again work with his former Fiorentina head coach Vincenzo Italiano. The Serbian forward has signed a three-year deal with the Istanbul side on a free transfer following his departure from Juventus.

Vlahovic left Juve when his contract expired at the end of last season, bringing an end to his four-year stint in Turin. Since joining Juve from Fiorentina in January 2022, only Inter's Lautaro Martinez with 84 goals has scored more in Serie A than Vlahovic's 50, level with Victor Osimhen.

The 2025-26 campaign was disrupted by injury. Vlahovic missed a large part of the season with a thigh injury, limiting him to just 19 games in the Italian top flight as Juventus finished a disappointing sixth.

Salary and Turkish Super Lig move

Sporting director Giorgio Chiellini confirmed after Vlahovic's exit that his salary demands were too great for Juve to meet, but Besiktas have made him the latest big name to move to the Turkish Super Lig.

Following Trabzonspor's signing of Mohamed Salah and Fenerbahce completing a deal for Romelu Lukaku, Vlahovic has put pen to paper on a deal Besiktas said was worth €7.5m per year.

Reunion with Italiano

In Turkiye, Vlahovic will be reunited with Vincenzo Italiano, who coached him during his final half-season with Fiorentina before he moved to Juve midway through 2021-22. He netted 17 Serie A goals that campaign overall, a figure he has never reached in a single season since.

Besiktas finished fourth in the Super Lig last season and must go through the qualifying rounds to reach the Europa League proper. They open their domestic campaign against Eyupspor on Sunday.