Hannover 96 loses Derrick Köhn to Galatasaray – transfer details confirmed

“A bitter loss”

Derrick Köhn is leaving Hannover 96 after the end of the transfer window in Germany and moving to Turkey. The 25-year-old left-back signed a contract until 2026 with Galatasaray, which like all clubs in the Süper Lig is still allowed to sign players until Friday, which can be extended to 2028 with an option. Instead of being the most valuable professional in the second division team’s squad with 3 million euros, he is now in the lower midfield in terms of market value for the Istanbul team.

According to official information from the Istanbul team, the basic fee for Köhn, whose contract with the Reds originally ran until 2025 and included an exit clause for the coming summer, is 3.35 million euros. Further bonuses amounting to 300,000 euros could be added. 96 sports director Marcus Mann is also said to have negotiated a resale share of 10 percent. Hannover last earned more in 2021/22 with the €4 million sale of Marvin Ducksch to Werder Bremen (29) (in addition to all transfers from Hannover 96). Köhn will receive 300,000 euros net from Galatasaray in the first half of the year, 450,000 euros from 2024/25 and 500,000 euros for the 2025/26 season, as well as a one-off signing bonus of 50,000 euros.

“Galatasaray was urgently looking for a left-back after Angeliño’s departure – and at a fairly modest price. Köhn is also an attacking left-back, which means he fits well into the profile Galatasaray is looking for,” explains Lara Karacan, Lead of Content TR at Transfermarkt, about the left-footer’s transfer. Why he was targeted apparently also has something to do with his advisor. “At first they actually wanted Levent Mercan, but were rejected by the club, so the advisor then suggested another protégé, Köhn.”

Switch to Galatasaray: Loss of Köhn for Hannover 96 “a bitter loss”

Köhn, who has been linked with Mainz 05, VfL Wolfsburg, TSG Hoffenheim and Eintracht Frankfurt in the past, is leaving Hannover after 56 games in which he was directly involved in 20 goals. With six assists this season, he was the second division team’s best provider so far. In 2022, the Hamburg native was signed by Willem II from the Netherlands for 500,000 euros. The 96ers are now in the middle of the promotion race without a left-back because Köhn’s representative Brooklyn Ezeh (22) has not trained with the professional team since November due to mental problems (to the news).

“It’s absolutely legitimate, Derrick wanted to do it,” said 96 coach Stefan Leitl at a press conference on Thursday. “Basically, it is also an honor that Derrick is negotiating with a club that will be playing in the Champions League and the championship next season. He deserves it and has made great development in the last year and a half. But it’s a bitter loss for us in terms of sport.” Since Marcel Halstenberg (31) is missing due to a red card, right-back Sei Muroya (29) is likely to move to the left side for the time being.

In a statement on the 96 website, Köhn himself said: “I am extremely grateful to Hannover 96. I had a wonderful time, felt very comfortable in the club and in the team and had the best conditions to show my best performance and develop personally. Now I can move to a club that is competing for the championship and is regularly represented internationally. This is a big step that I am confident of and definitely want to take. I will only think back positively about my time at 96, the many beautiful moments in the stadium and encounters with fans and I will definitely be able to visit Hanover from time to time.”

Sports director Mann justified the sale after the end of the winter transfer window in Germany, among other things, with the good offer: “Derrick is a good boy who we wish him all the best in his new job and on his future path. He clearly signaled to us that he would like to accept this offer and no longer sees his future in Hanover. Especially as a second division team, one of our goals must of course be to generate surpluses on the transfer market – we have succeeded in doing that very well here. You always have to carefully consider letting a regular player go, but we have options in our squad to compensate for the departure. It makes us proud that a player we signed a year and a half ago is now moving to Galatasaray Istanbul. Hannover 96 can and should also be a springboard. We always bring this up in discussions with potential newcomers. A transfer like this is not only an honor for Derrick, but also for us as a club.”

To home page