Erkal Üsküplü from TSV Moosburg: stormed into the spotlight at the taillight

Created: 12/27/2021, 7:00 AM

Woe to him when he takes the free kick: Erkal Üsküplü's standards are feared in the district league - Juninho and David Beckham are not his role models for nothing.

With his 18 goals this season, Üsküplü is currently in second place in the top scorer list.

© Michalek

Erkal Üsküplü at TSV Moosburg seamlessly builds on his hit rate at Vatanspor Freising.

18 goals for the winter break are a brand.

Moosburg

- At the bottom of TSV Moosburg played - or rather shot - one player clearly in the limelight: Erkal Üsküplü. He came from Vatanspor Freising before the season and scored 18 goals in his first 16 district league games. That is more than two of the league teams in total and more than two thirds of all TSV hits. But it didn't help much: The Moosburgers are seven points behind in last place and so far have only celebrated one victory.

To which the 31-year-old striker made a significant contribution: Coach Sebastian Gerlsbeck's squad won 6: 4 at SV Wörth at the beginning of November.

In the official match report sheet, Erkal Üsküplü is noted six times as a goalscorer - not the highest number of hits for the striker in a league game: he even put together a pack of seven for Vatanspor in the A-class.

At Vatanspor, the offensive man was finally converted into a striker almost four years ago when the regular forces were injured.

Before that, the 1.90 meter tall Üsküplü was mostly in the sixth position in the youth at FC Neufahrn and at SE Freising.

It was only in adulthood, when he returned to his roots at Türkspor Neufahrn, that he played further up the front as a ten or winger.

Survived two cruciate ligament tears

The relationship with the Neufahrner Turks existed from an early age. Erkal's father had already spent many years there as captain and leading player and often took his two little sons with him to training and infected them with the soccer virus. When the dad ended his active career, son Erkal was involved in the promotion of Türk Neufahrn to the district class after surviving cruciate ligament surgery. That was his club, says the trained retail salesman, and that's where he always felt most comfortable. Even if the SEF and Vatanspor were more important for its development.

After the second cruciate ligament tear, it took Üsküplü two years to return to active football, also because of his training.

Since Türk Neufahrn had disbanded, he was briefly at Mintraching and then at FC Neufahrn.

There the next major injury hit him, this time in the ankle.

He actually wanted to quit football.

But his cousin persuaded him to come to Vatanspor - and since then, Üsküplü has been delivering goals like on the assembly line: In the A-class season 2018/19 there were 33 goals, in the interrupted Corona round 2019/21 in the district class 15 goals.

(By the way: Everything from the region is now also available in our regular Freising newsletter.)

This season, TSV Moosburg could well be over 20 again in the district league.

Coach Gerlsbeck describes him as “merciless in front of goal” and is happy to have such a good striker.

The trainer finds the technical skills of his number 7 in standards and long shots particularly remarkable.

"From an early age I tried to learn something from the free kicks of professionals like Juninho or David Beckham and to learn the technique," says Üsküplü.

District league or state league?

The family comes first

The opposing clubs also know about the strengths of the ardent Bursaspor fan - one or the other would definitely like to have him in their ranks. The 31-year-old takes note of their inquiries, but the main thing for him is his wife and two-year-old daughter. The striker, who works as a deputy branch manager in retail in Freising, will soon become a father for the second time. In any case, the family takes precedence, even if he would be tempted to play in the district or state league.

At the moment, however, he feels very much at home at TSV Moosburg, even if it looks rather bad in terms of sport.

But in the most recent games there was a clear upward trend.

“We haven't given up on each other yet.

The first goal is to reach the relegation places ”, emphasizes Üsküplü.

The recipe for success could look like this: TSV gets its defense problems under control - and its top striker continues to score as before.

Josef Fuchs