Tugay Kerimoğlu

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Lore & Background

Tugay was born and raised in Istanbul. He started playing football in the youth academy of Trabzonspor. His father, Özkan, was a semi-professional footballer before becoming a bank manager and his brother, Tolgay, was also a football player. He played for Galatasaray from 1987 to 2000, where he won the Turkish League six times and the Turkish Cup four times. He was made captain at Galatasaray in the 1992–93 season, making him the youngest captain in the history of his club. He signed for Scottish club Rangers in the January 2000 mid season transfer window, and joined Blackburn Rovers for the 2001–02 season. Tugay was named Blackburn's Player of the Year in the 2003–04 campaign. He retired from football on 24 May 2009 at the age of 38.

In Their Own Story

The afternoon sun glints off the grass at Kadıköy Stadium as Tugay receives the ball near the touchline. The crowd is hushed, remembering the past, but the whistle blows and he drives forward. A quick feint leaves a defender stumbling backward. He delivers a curling cross into the box that finds a teammate's head. As the net ripples, the roar from the stands finally swells to meet the moment. In this instant, history is rewritten not by words, but by skill.

Reader's Guide

After retirement, Tugay began working with Mark Hughes behind the scenes at Manchester City academy in a coaching role. He then became the coordinator for the Galatasaray youth academy in February 2010. On 21 October 2010, he was assigned as assistant coach for Galatasaray alongside Gheorghe Hagi. On 4 October 2013, he was assigned again as assistant coach for Galatasaray alongside Roberto Mancini during the 2013–14 season. In November 2015, he took over Şanlıurfaspor in the Turkish second division as head coach, leaving in April 2016 by mutual agreement.

Did You Know?

• Tugay represented Turkey at Euro 1996, Euro 2000, and the 2002 FIFA World Cup, where Turkey finished third.
• He wore number 94 to commemorate his 94 caps for his country.
• As a youngster, he was an extremely promising motor racer, competing as high as Formula 3 level.
• Tugay is a Muslim and keeps his religious beliefs private.