Çağlar Söyüncü facts for kids
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Söyüncü with Turkey in 2016
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Çağlar Söyüncü | ||
| Date of birth | 23 May 1996 | ||
| Place of birth | İzmir, Turkey | ||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Centre-back | ||
| Team information | |||
|
Current team
|
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 | 25 | (1) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2014 | Turkey U18 | 1 | (0) |
| 2015 | Turkey U19 | 3 | (0) |
| 2015 | Turkey U20 | 3 | (0) |
| 2015 | Turkey U21 | 1 | (0) |
| 2016– | Turkey | 58 | (2) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 31 May 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 11 June 2025 |
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Çağlar Söyüncü (born on May 23, 1996) is a Turkish professional footballer. 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 with Altınordu in Turkey. In 2016, he moved to SC Freiburg in Germany. Later, in 2018, he joined Leicester City in England. With Leicester, he played 132 games and helped them win the FA Cup and FA Community Shield in 2021. In 2023, he moved to Atlético Madrid in Spain. He then 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 Turkey. He was also part of the Turkish team for UEFA Euro 2020.
Contents
Club Career Highlights
Starting with Altınordu
Söyüncü began his professional journey with Altınordu. This team played in the TFF First League, which is the second-highest football league in Turkey. During the 2015–16 season, many big clubs were interested in him. These included Beşiktaş, Galatasaray, and Sevilla. However, he chose to move to Germany's Bundesliga. He believed this league would be better for his football growth.
Moving to SC Freiburg
On May 24, 2016, Söyüncü joined the German team SC Freiburg. This team had just been promoted to the top German league, the Bundesliga. He was the first Turkish player to move directly from Turkey's second league to the Bundesliga.
He played his first Bundesliga game on August 28, 2016. It was an away match against Hertha Berlin, which Freiburg lost 2–1. During his time at Freiburg, other big clubs like Lille, Roma, and Villarreal showed interest in him. Even Manchester City was reportedly watching him.
Time at Leicester City
On August 9, 2018, Söyüncü signed a five-year contract with Leicester City. This English club plays in the Premier League. The transfer fee was about £18 million. Söyüncü made his Premier League debut on October 27, 2018. The game was at King Power Stadium against West Ham United, and it ended in a 1–1 draw.
Söyüncü scored his first Premier League goal on November 3, 2019. This was during the 2019–20 season against Crystal Palace. Leicester won that game 2–0. His strong performances that season earned him a spot in the Premier League PFA Team of the Year. This award recognizes the best players in the league.
On May 11, 2021, Söyüncü scored the winning goal for Leicester City. They beat Manchester United 2–1 away from home. This was Leicester's 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 played a key role in defense after another player, Jonny Evans, got injured. In August 2021, he also played in the 2021 FA Community Shield. Leicester won 1–0 against Manchester City, who were the league champions.
During the 2022–23 season, Söyüncü played less often. This was reportedly due to disagreements with the manager, Brendan Rodgers. However, he played well when Dean Smith became the new manager. Despite his efforts, Leicester City was relegated from the Premier League. On June 5, 2023, it was announced that Söyüncü would leave the club. His contract ended that month.
Joining Atlético Madrid
On July 5, 2023, Söyüncü joined Atlético Madrid. This is a Spanish club in La Liga. He signed a four-year deal. He played nine games for them, including six in the league. In a game against Sevilla on December 23, he was sent off. This happened just four minutes after he came on as a substitute.
Playing for Fenerbahçe
On January 29, 2024, Söyüncü moved to Fenerbahçe on loan. This club plays in the Turkish Süper Lig. He made his Süper Lig debut on February 3, 2024, in a 2-0 win against Antalyaspor. Four days later, he played his first Turkish Cup game. He helped his team reach the quarter-finals. On March 8, 2024, he made his first European club appearance for Fenerbahçe. He also provided an assist in a 3-0 win against Union SG.
He scored two goals in his first half-season with Fenerbahçe. One important goal was on May 19, 2024, against rivals Galatasaray. His move to Fenerbahçe became permanent on July 1, 2024. He signed a three-year deal with an option for one more year.
International Career
In November 2015, Çağlar Söyüncü was called up to the Turkey national football team. The coach, Fatih Terim, invited him after another defender, Serdar Aziz, got injured.
Söyüncü was the first player from Altınordu to be called up to the Turkish national team in 78 years. The last one was Sait Altınordu in 1937. He was also the first player from any İzmir-based club to join the national team since 1997. On November 17, 2015, he was a reserve player for a friendly game against Greece. However, he did not play in that match.
On March 18, 2016, he was called up again for friendly games. These were against Sweden and Austria. Söyüncü earned his first senior national team cap on March 24, 2016. He came on as a substitute in the final minutes of the game against Sweden. He started his second game on September 1, 2016, against Russia. That match ended in a 0–0 draw.
On June 1, 2018, Söyüncü scored his first goal for the national team. It 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.
Personal Life
Çağlar Söyüncü has been a big fan of Fenerbahçe since he was a child.
Career Statistics
Club Appearances
| 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 | 25 | 1 | 4 | 0 | — | 11 | 1 | — | 40 | 2 | ||
| 2025–26 | Süper Lig | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |||
| Total | 37 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 56 | 4 | ||
| Career total | 225 | 10 | 27 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 29 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 292 | 11 | ||
International Appearances
| 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 | |
| 2025 | 2 | 0 | |
| Total | 58 | 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
