Turkish giant Galatasaray, as well as clubs in England and Belgium, is one of several clubs interested in Atlanta United fullback George Bello, a person familiar with the situation said Saturday.
Bello, 19, has made 32 starts for the Five Stripes over the past three seasons. He has one goal and two assists.
He also made his first appearance for the U.S. men’s national team. He is part of the provisional roster for the U.S. for this summer’s Gold Cup.
Volkan Kilic, a journalist in Turkey, was the first to report Galatasaray’s interest in Bello. Kilic reported that Bello is the club’s second choice, with Alex Moreno being the first choice.
Bello, a native of Douglasville, is a very fast, attacking left-footed fullback who has improved on defense in the past two seasons as he has gained experience.
He signed with Atlanta United as a Homegrown player for the 2018 season. He made 19 appearances with one goal for Atlanta United 2 from 2018-20 before locking down a starting position with the first team in 2020.
Galatasaray, based in Istanbul, has won Turkey’s first division 22 times. It has won the Turkish Cup 16 and won the UEFA Cup and Super Cup in 2000.
The secondary MLS transfer window opens July 7 and closes Aug. 5. The transfer window is scheduled to open in Turkey on Sept. 8.
Other fullbacks on Atlanta United’s roster include Mikey Ambrose and Andrew Gutman, who is on loan with New York Red Bulls.
Atlanta United has a positive history selling players. It sold Miguel Almiron for more than $25 million to Newcastle before the 2019 season. It sold Pity Martinez to Al-Nassr, in Saudi Arabia, for more than $15 million during the 2020 season.
Bello has a market value of $2.75 million, according to transfermarkt.us. It would be unlikely that Atlanta United would sell him for such a low total.
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