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Turkish national player Caglar Söyüncü: prime example of the development in Turkish football
Photo:
GOKHAN KILINCER / REUTERS
Christian Streich considered briefly whether he would reveal the story.
Oh come on, the coach of SC Freiburg thought: "I think I can tell you, Vinsche won't be angry with me." Vinsche is Vincenzo Grifo and in February 2017 he was in a pizzeria with some team-mates.
Because Grifo was something of an unofficial integration officer at the sports club, he picked up the phone to ask whether Caglar Söyüncü would also like to have a pizza.
Only there was one problem: Söyüncü didn't understand German and Grifo didn't speak Turkish.
And yet a short time later he entered the pizzeria and enjoyed dinner in the presence of his colleagues.
"You obviously found a way," said Streich happily.
It was another step in integrating a player with exceptional skills.
The scouts had previously reported a defensive talent from the Turkish second division.
Strengths in a duel, in the air, in the opening of the game, hardly disturbing.
But still with little experience.
You can make great things out of this potential, they thought in Freiburg - and they kept their patience.
Söyüncü 2017 at SC Freiburg
Photo: Patrick Seeger / dpa
Because the fine-tuning took time.
Söyüncü made some hair-raising mistakes.
The analysis with the player turned out to be difficult because of the language problems. Streich recruited the Turkish-speaking bus driver from the youth department.
When Söyüncü thinks back to that time today, he is "infinitely grateful," as he says.
Streich gave him the start of a remarkable career.
Söyüncü and the Turkish national team will play the opening game of the European Football Championship against Italy in the evening (9 p.m. ARD, live ticker SPIEGEL).
Turkey is considered a possible surprise team of the tournament: They combine talent with experience.
It is the mixture that makes success.
This is surprising because Turkish football actually has major structural weaknesses.
Bad purchases, debts, no sanctions
Söyüncü is a prime example of the state of sport in Turkey.
The country with its young age structure repeatedly produces special talents.
However, the deficiencies in the promotion of young talent are immense, so that the breakthrough of young players is almost left to chance.
This is also due to the financial worries in the league.
The country’s flagships alone are hopelessly in debt. Besiktas, Fenerbahce and Galatasaray together have more than a billion euros in debt. In the entire league, the mountain of debt is said to be over two billion euros. The Istanbul clubs recently had to make arrangements with a banking association in order to stay alive and to be reasonably liquid. If the loan is not repaid, bankruptcy threatens.
But instead of relying on young players, the clubs prefer to buy expensive abroad. The success rate with the transfers is negligible and yet the clubs are not getting any smarter. Radamel Falcao earns up to seven million euros a year at Galatasaray - net, but is constantly injured. Competitor Fenerbahce bought almost 30 players last season to win their first championship title since 2014. In the end you only came in third and are now aiming for the next change.
The Turkish Football Association regularly tightened the rules on foreigners, but then loosened them again because the clubs were exerting pressure.
The same applies to the limit regulation that was first installed two years ago.
The association therefore specifies how much the clubs can spend in the respective football departments.
Those who do not adhere to them can expect high fines, but the clubs use their contacts in politics.
Despite obvious violations, nobody has been punished so far.
The Bundesliga offers good development opportunities
The talents who are now making do with fleeing abroad are left by the wayside.
Popular destination: the Bundesliga.
Söyüncü once started. He is now head of defense at Leicester City with an estimated market value of 45 million euros and he could even move to an even bigger club after the European Championship. Ozan Kabak played for half a year at Galatasaray and switched to VfB Stuttgart at the first opportunity. In winter, FC Schalke loaned the defender to Liverpool FC. The development of both players has got around. In the new season, Ali Akman (19, Eintracht Frankfurt) and Ömer Faruk Beyaz (17, VfB Stuttgart) are the next talents in the Bundesliga.
If you talk to both players, they will tell you about the great development opportunities in Germany.
From the good environment to develop yourself further.
Beyaz, who was drawn to VfB, has been on everyone's lips in Turkey for years.
Fenerbahce saw in him the playmaker for the next ten years.
He was ensnared, but Fenerbahce brought in five new and sometimes expensive playmakers, including Mesut Özil, last season alone.
There is no place for a young talent.
Win-win situation?
The Turkish national coach Senol Günes has been criticizing the neglectful treatment of the youth work for years, repeatedly referring to the good work in Germany, but is secretly happy that Frankfurt and Stuttgart will soon be serving him the next national players.
Once the association fought for Turkish talent in Germany, now they are being sent to the Bundesliga so that they can develop better.
This new generation of "guest workers" is welcome for the German clubs.
They cost little and promise high returns if they are resold.
That was the case with Söyüncü, for whom Freiburg received 21 million euros.
This could also happen with Kabak, which Schalke 04 wants to sell for about the same amount.
And Frankfurt's Akman already had offers from England and could bring in decent proceeds if they break through in Frankfurt.
At this EM, the Turkish audience can see how good their talents are.
But they will also be shown what the Turkish clubs are doing wrong when dealing with their young stars.
