Barca flop Pjanic to make permanent Besiktas move?
FT Desk
- Updated: 14 Nov 2021 21:11 GMT
- 3 min read
Besiktas are planning to make Miralem Pjanic’s loan move from Barcelona permanent in 2022, according to Diario AS.
Pjanic joined Turkish side Besiktas this past summer on a season-long loan after a disastrous first season at Barcelona.
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The 31-year-old has had an impressive start to his career in Istanbul, already delivering four assists from seven starts.
It is a turnaround for Pjanic, who endured a miserable year at Barcelona in 2020-21.
He moved to Barcelona from Juventus in the summer of 2020 in a big-money swap deal which saw Arthur Melo move the other way.
📊 European World Cup qualifying stat leaders (11th - 13th November):
🏹 Shots - R. Lewandowski (9)
🔐 Key passes - M. Pjanic (8)
🤤 Dribbles - K. Coman (6)
💪 Tackles - A. Sampsted (7)
🧠 Interceptions - N. Naumov (8)
👀 Passes - T. Castagne (127)
🧤 Saves - B. Buchel (14)— WhoScored.com (@WhoScored) November 14, 2021
Pjanic failed to win a first-team shirt and started just five of Barcelona’s league matches.
All season long, he failed to contribute a single goal or assist and he fell out with now sacked Barcelona coach Ronald Koeman.
What Pjanic said about Barcelona frustration?
“I have played at all the clubs I’ve been at and with all the coaches I’ve had. A situation like this has never happened to me. Of course it’s not easy, I accept it with great difficulty,” Pjanic complained to Telefoot earlier this year.
“I don’t have the exact reasons why I’ve not had the playing time I expected.
“I keep working and you have to respect the decisions that are taken, even if you don’t agree. I want to leave my mark at this club.”
Pjanic had been Juventus’ key midfielder during four years with the Italian giants, winning four straight Scudetti and reaching the 2017 Champions League final.
He had wanted to return to Turin in the summer but Juventus were unable to agree a deal with Barcelona and in the end the midfielder moved to Besiktas instead.
Besiktas are currently sixth in the Turkish SuperLig, only three points off second place but 10 points behind Trabzonspor at the summit.
