Brentford’s Turkey under-21 international striker Halil Dervişoğlu has joined Galatasaray Spor Kulübü on loan. The 21-year-old completed the move to the side that have won the Turkish league 22 times earlier today, Monday 25 January. He will spend the rest of the 2020/21 season with the team that is currently second in the Turkish top flight and in the last eight of the Turkish cup.

This will be the second loan this season for Halil. He spent the first half of the season with FC Twente, in the Netherlands. Halil made ten appearances for them in all competitions before returning to West London at the start of the month. He scored one and made one as Brentford beat Middlesbrough in the Emirates FA Cup Third Round tie against Middlesbrough and will now complete the season in Turkey.

Thomas Frank, Brentford FC Head Coach, said: “Halil is a young player that we have a lot of belief in and one we think has a big future at Brentford. He made a real impact in the cup tie against Middlesbrough but the competition for him here, with Ivan Toney and Marcus Forss, is very strong. He is at the stage of his career where he needs to play First Team matches.

“He had a good spell at Twente, but this move to Galatasaray should mean he plays more games in the second half of the season. He is also going in to a club with a great history, challenging for the league, where there will be lots of pressure on him, which is a good way for him to develop. When we send players out we see them coming back stronger, you can see it with Marcus, Mads Bech Sørensen, and Emiliano Marcondes in our team this season. We think this loan will help Halil do the same.”

Halil joined The Bees from Sparta Rotterdam a year ago in a deal that was announced in August 2019. He made seven appearances for The Bees last season, starting in two Emirates FA Cup ties against Stoke City and Leicester City but was largely a substitute behind a Brentford front three that scored 57 Sky Bet Championship goals. He played in the Carabao Cup win at Southampton in August before his move to Twente and then scored on his only appearance after he return from the Netherlands.

Halil worked his way through the youth ranks at Sparta, playing for Jong Sparta Rotterdam in the Dutch third tier and then moving in to the main group, playing in the second tier and helping Sparta win promotion via the Play-Offs. Halil adapted quickly to Eredivisie football, the Dutch top flight, and contributed five goals and three assists in 17 league outings for Sparta before moving to Brentford. Halil has also been a regular for Turkey’s Under-21s and scored five goals in three appearances for them this season. He has eight goals in 13 games for his county overall.