Turkish side Adana Demirspor has released Senegalese international Badou Ndiaye amidst reported interest from Championship outfit Cardiff City.
Cardiff, who have reportedly made an agreement with the 33-year-old, are hunting a statement incomer this window, and Ndiaye’s release seems to confirm he’s heading back to the UK. The former Stoke City midfielder has spent the last two years in Turkey, but a short statement on their website confirmed that time has now come to an end.
“We have parted ways with our football player Badou Ndiaye by mutual agreement. We thank Ndiaye for his services to our club and wish him success in his future career,” they wrote.
It paves the way for a return to English football with Cardiff City, at a level he appeared 14 times at with Stoke City. Ndiaye started his career with Diambars in Senegal but came to wider attention during a spell in Norway with Bodo/Glimt. He earned a €300,000 (£250,000) move to Osmanlispor, whom he helped to a Europa League place, with 11 goals in 33 appearances. Just two years later, his value had ballooned to €7.5 million (6£6.3 million) when Galatasaray came calling.
His time in Istanbul was also a huge success – he helped them to a Super Lig title, despite only playing 17 times. That was how many games it took to impress Stoke City, then in the Premier League, and a £14 million fee was agreed. He joined Stoke in January 2018 but saw his club relegated at the end of the season.
His time in England soured quickly, and after being heavily criticised for his performance in their opening fixture of the 2018/19 season, he rejoined Galatasaray on loan, where he was again a title winner, as well as winning the Turkish Cup. His appearances for Stoke were sporadic, interspersed by loan moves to Trabzonspor and Fatih Karagümrük.
After another loan spell, this time in Saudi Arabia, he left Stoke in July 2021, having appeared just 27 times. Most recently, he’s been with Adana, currently seventh in the Turkish top flight, althoguh this season he has no goals or assists. However, in his last full campaign, he scored eight and added four assists,
Writer’s View
Ndiaye is still a decent player, even if the years are catching up with him. English fans got a glimpse of his value. -he bagged twice for Stoke in the Premier League, but he never looked happy in the second tier. Is he now accepting that he’s got to drop down the divisions?
Cardiff fans will hope so. At his best, he’s a goalscoring midfielder who’ll add a real dimension to their attacking approach. At his worst, he’ll appear a handful of times before heading back to Turkey on loan, only to win trophies once again.
Founder and Editor-in-Chief at The Real EFL, Gary is a passionate Lincoln City fan with extensive content creation across the Championship and EFL. He also shares expert football betting tips.
