Çağlar Söyüncü facts for kids
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Söyüncü with Turkey in 2016
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 23 May 1996 | ||
| Place of birth | İzmir, Turkey | ||
| Height | 1.85 m | ||
| Playing position | Centre-back | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Fenerbahçe | ||
| Number | 4 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2006–2011 | Menemen Belediyespor | ||
| 2011–2013 | Bucaspor | ||
| 2013–2014 | Gümüşorduspor | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2014–2016 | Altınordu | 34 | (2) |
| 2016–2018 | SC Freiburg | 50 | (1) |
| 2018–2023 | Leicester City | 98 | (4) |
| 2023–2024 | Atlético Madrid | 6 | (0) |
| 2024 | → Fenerbahçe (loan) | 12 | (2) |
| 2024– | Fenerbahçe | 15 | (1) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2014 | Turkey U18 | 1 | (0) |
| 2015 | Turkey U19 | 3 | (0) |
| 2015 | Turkey U20 | 3 | (0) |
| 2015 | Turkey U21 | 1 | (0) |
| 2016– | Turkey | 56 | (2) |
† Appearances (Goals). |
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Çağlar Söyüncü (born May 23, 1996) is a Turkish professional football player. He plays as a centre-back (a defender) for the Süper Lig club Fenerbahçe. He also plays for the Turkey national team.
Söyüncü started his senior career in Turkey with Altınordu. In 2016, he moved to Germany to play for SC Freiburg in the Bundesliga. Later, in 2018, he joined Leicester City in England. He played 132 games for Leicester. With them, he won the FA Cup and the FA Community Shield in 2021.
In 2023, he moved to Atlético Madrid in Spain. Soon after, he joined Fenerbahçe, first on loan, and then permanently. Söyüncü first played for the Turkish national team in 2016. He has played over 50 games for his country. He was also part of the Turkish team at UEFA Euro 2020.
Contents
Çağlar Söyüncü's Club Journey
Starting at Altınordu
Çağlar Söyüncü began his professional football journey with Altınordu. This team plays in the TFF First League, which is the second-highest football league in Turkey. During the 2015–16 season, other big clubs like Beşiktaş, Galatasaray, and Sevilla were interested in him. However, he chose to move to the German Bundesliga. He believed this league would be best for his career and help him improve as a player.
Playing in Germany with SC Freiburg
On May 24, 2016, Söyüncü joined the German team SC Freiburg. This team had just been promoted to Germany's top football league, the Bundesliga. He was the first Turkish player to move directly to the Bundesliga from Turkey's second league.
He played his first Bundesliga game on August 28, 2016. It was an away game against Hertha Berlin, which Freiburg lost 2–1. During his time there, other big clubs like Lille, Roma, Villarreal, and even Manchester City showed interest in him.
Time at Leicester City in England
On August 9, 2018, Söyüncü joined the English Premier League team Leicester City. He signed a five-year contract with them. His transfer fee was around £18 million. Söyüncü made his Premier League debut on October 27, 2018. This game was at Leicester's home stadium, the King Power Stadium, against West Ham United. The match ended in a 1–1 draw.
Söyüncü scored his first Premier League goal on November 3, 2019. This was during the 2019–20 season in Leicester's 11th game. He scored against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park, helping Leicester win 2–0. Because of his great playing during that season, he was chosen for the Premier League PFA Team of the Year.
On May 11, 2021, Söyüncü scored the winning goal for Leicester City against Manchester United. Leicester won 2–1 away from home. This was their first win at Old Trafford since 1998. Four days later, he played in the 2021 FA Cup final against Chelsea. Leicester won 1–0. He also played in the 2021 FA Community Shield in August, where Leicester beat Manchester City 1–0.
During the 2022–23 season, Söyüncü played less often. This was different from the previous three seasons where he played more than 20 games each year. He played better when Dean Smith became the new manager. However, this was not enough to stop the team from being moved down from the Premier League. On June 5, 2023, it was announced that Söyüncü would leave Leicester City. His contract ended that month.
Moving to Atlético Madrid
On July 5, 2023, Söyüncü joined the Spanish La Liga team Atlético Madrid. He signed a four-year contract. He played nine games for them in total. This included six league games, two UEFA Champions League games, and one Copa del Rey match. In a game against Sevilla on December 23, he was sent off (given a red card) just four minutes after coming on as a substitute.
Joining Fenerbahçe
On January 29, 2024, Söyüncü signed with the Süper Lig club Fenerbahçe on loan. He played for them for the rest of that season. He scored two goals in his first half-season. One of these was the only goal in a game against rivals Galatasaray on May 19. His move to Fenerbahçe became permanent on July 1, 2024. He signed a three-year deal with an option for one more year.
Playing for Turkey: International Career
In November 2015, Çağlar Söyüncü was called up to the Turkey national football team. This was by coach Fatih Terim. Söyüncü was the first player from Altınordu to be called up to the national team in 78 years! He was also the first player from any İzmir-based football club to join the national team since 1997.
On March 24, 2016, Söyüncü played his first game for the senior national team. He came on as a substitute in a friendly game against Sweden. He earned his second cap (played his second game) on September 1, 2016. He started in a friendly game against Russia, which ended in a 0–0 draw.
On June 1, 2018, Söyüncü scored his first goal for the national team. This was in a friendly game against Tunisia in Switzerland. On June 1, 2021, he was chosen for the 26-man squad for UEFA Euro 2020. He was also named in the preliminary squad for UEFA Euro 2024 on May 24, 2024. However, he had to withdraw on May 29 due to an injury.
Çağlar Söyüncü's Personal Life
Çağlar Söyüncü has been a big fan of Fenerbahçe since he was a child.
Career Statistics
Club Appearances and Goals
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Altınordu | 2014–15 | TFF First League | 4 | 0 | 6 | 0 | — | — | — | 10 | 0 | |||
| 2015–16 | TFF First League | 30 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 30 | 2 | ||||
| Total | 34 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 40 | 2 | ||
| SC Freiburg | 2016–17 | Bundesliga | 24 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 25 | 0 | |||
| 2017–18 | Bundesliga | 26 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | — | 30 | 1 | |||
| Total | 50 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 55 | 1 | ||
| Leicester City | 2018–19 | Premier League | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 8 | 0 | ||
| 2019–20 | Premier League | 34 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | — | 42 | 1 | |||
| 2020–21 | Premier League | 23 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 32 | 1 | ||
| 2021–22 | Premier League | 28 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 41 | 1 | |
| 2022–23 | Premier League | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 9 | 1 | |||
| Total | 98 | 4 | 12 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 132 | 4 | ||
| Atlético Madrid | 2023–24 | La Liga | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 | |
| Fenerbahçe (loan) | 2023–24 | Süper Lig | 12 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 2 | |
| Fenerbahçe | 2024–25 | Süper Lig | 15 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 9 | 1 | — | 25 | 2 | ||
| Total | 27 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 41 | 4 | ||
| Career total | 215 | 10 | 24 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 27 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 277 | 11 | ||
International Appearances and Goals
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Turkey | 2016 | 2 | 0 |
| 2017 | 9 | 0 | |
| 2018 | 11 | 1 | |
| 2019 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2020 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2021 | 13 | 1 | |
| 2022 | 8 | 0 | |
| 2023 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2024 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 56 | 2 | |
- Scores and results list Turkey's goal tally first.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 June 2018 | Stade de Genève, Geneva, Switzerland |  Tunisia |
2–2 | 2–2 | Friendly |
| 2 | 27 March 2021 | La Rosaleda Stadium, Malaga, Spain |  Norway |
2–0 | 3–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
Honours and Awards
Leicester City
- FA Cup: 2020–21
- FA Community Shield: 2021
Individual Awards
- Turkish Footballer of the Year: 2019
- PFA Team of the Year: 2019–20 Premier League
See also
In Spanish: Çağlar Söyüncü para niños
