Matej Maglica, 27, signed a two-year contract with Turkish club Kocaelispor, while Dinamo Zagreb had been interested in him. Maglica scored eight goals in 33 matches for Darmstadt last season, but the transfer did not materialise.
In the Turkish Süper Lig, Kocaelispor also signed Brun Petković, and Maglica will play for him in the top tier of Turkish football. Dinamo followed the potential reinforcement during the Croatian transfer window, which runs until 7 September, but decided not to pursue the deal.
After Maglica attracted interest from Dinamo and German Kaiserslautern, no contract was finalised, and he has now moved to Kocaelispor. In Darmstadt he was known for scoring goals as a defender, netting eight in 33 appearances across all competitions.
In the same transfer window, Dinamo introduced 18-year-old Gambian midfielder Fuzyja Taylor from Medeama, and other moves were discussed on the Croatian market: Boško Šutalo moved to Greek Aris, and Gorica is interested in French defensive midfielder Tom Lacoux from Újpest.
Dinamo Zagreb, which monitored other clubs in the SHNL and lower Croatian leagues during the transfer window, missed out on Maglica but will focus on other reinforcements for the upcoming season.
