Is Wesley Sneijder really inching closer to … Galatasaray?

As unlikely as this move seemed at the beginning of the month, now it appears Wesley Sneijder could actually move to Turkey. No joke. Galatasaray, one of the country’s two huge clubs, have confirmed a €10 million agreement is in place with Inter Milan. An just as remarkably, Sneijder’s agent claims player and club are working toward a deal.

How is this even possible? Wesley Sneijder? In Turkey? This deal seems three years and one World Cup cycle too soon; yet perversely, it also a lot makes sense.

To understand why you have to remember how Sneijder and Inter have painted themselves into this forlorn corner, a process that started when the Nerazzurri rewarded Sneijder with a new contract after their 2009-10 treble-winning season. At the time, Sneijder was being discussed as a Ballon d’Or candidate, a status earned by winning the Champions League in the same year he helped the Netherlands to a World Cup final.

Since, his brilliant technical quality and playmaking has been rejoined by the fitness concerns that plagued him at Real Madrid. Combine that with a player who has become accustomed to having an attack building around him in Italy’s more tactical, less athletic game and you have a player whose value as regressed sharply. And you have a club that’s spend two years regretting their generosity.

That’s why Inter’s entered this gambit. While in theory they’re a more competitive team with an integrated Sneijder, the Dutch creator’s value has become so skewed that it makes sense for them to try to force his hand. They want him to cut €2 million from his annual salary or move, and as leverage they’ve used his playing time. Sneijder hasn’t appeared in a game since Sept. 26.

If Sneijder was willing to give that money back, he’d be playing for Andrea Stramaccioni right now. And that may still happen, but you can’t blame a guy for expecting his club to perform a contract in good faith.  Sniejder’s tried to wait Inter out with the hope they’ll change their mind, but now that the winter window is open, he’s exploring the market. In his ideal world, Sneijder will find a team willing to give him something close to his current salary while offering Inter’s competitive opportunities.

But when you think about it, the list of teams that would be willing to pay Sneijder’s £4.8 million salary, a transfer fee, offer him European competition while actually having a need for him is very small. The very few teams that have those financial resources already have stacked rosters. Real Madrid has Mesut Ozil, Luka Modric and Kaka. Barcelona has no lack of playmakers. Same for Bayern Munich. Perhaps teams like Paris Saint-Germain or England’s top three have spots, but if they don’t want to add a high-earner who hasn’t played to his reputation for two years, you can hardly fault them.

That’s where a team like Galatasaray comes into play. They may not be they type of club Sneijder envisioned what the calendar turned, but they’re a huge, well-resourced club that’s in Champions League. They face Schalke in the Round of 16. If they can add Sneijder to already has Uruguayan goalkeeper Fernando Muslera, Ivorian defender Emmanuel Eboué, Brazilian midfielder Felipe Melo and striker Burka Yilmaz (Champions League’s co-leading scorer), they might be able advance in the competition. At least, that’s what they convince themselves.

And if, along the way, Sneijder happens to reestablish his value ande can be sold on in the summer, all the better. The proposed €10 million fee is high (and Sneijder’s wages won’t help), but what if he’s only on the books for six months before moving on (at a small profit) this in summer? It could be worse.

And if that doesn’t happen and you have to hold on to the player, then you’re a Turkish club that landed Wesley Freakin’ Sneijder. You trim payroll in other places, turn to the east, and scoff at your rivals: “We have Wesley Sneijder.” This idea could actually work.

It’s just a matter of Sneijder signing up. Undoubtedly, his agent is calling around, begging another club to come in. But if nobody does, that’s probably a good sign that it’s time to go to Turkey. There are a lot worse places to play than Istanbul.