Zenit overtakes Lille in battle for John Duran
Saint Petersburg's Zenit has offered more favorable terms than French Lille for the transfer of Colombian forward John Duran.
Apr 19, 2026 0
Insider Ekrem Konur reported on February 2 on social network X that Zenit has taken the lead in negotiations to acquire the forward.
22-year-old Colombian John Duran is owned by Saudi club Al-Nassr, but currently plays for Turkish Fenerbahce on loan.
Negotiations are ongoing, with the Saint Petersburg club ahead of Lille in financial terms and showing the most activity. The player himself has already given preliminary consent to move to Zenit.
Duran is loaned to Fenerbahce until the end of the 2025/26 season. In the current campaign, he has played 20 matches in all competitions, scoring five goals and providing two assists. According to the portal Transfermarkt, his market value is 32 million euros.
The option of moving to Lille is now considered unlikely, and the main direction for the Colombian has become Saint Petersburg.
Earlier, Zenit sold two of its forwards: Mateo Cassierra moved to Brazilian Atletico Mineiro, and Luciano Gondou to Moscow CSKA. As a result, the club has only one nominal forward Alexander Sobolev, who is experiencing poor form in attacking actions.
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