Burak Yılmaz facts for kids
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Yılmaz in 2023
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 15 July 1985 | ||
| Place of birth | Antalya, Turkey | ||
| Height | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1994–2002 | Antalyaspor | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2002–2006 | Antalyaspor | 70 | (17) |
| 2006–2008 | Beşiktaş | 39 | (6) |
| 2008 | Manisaspor | 16 | (9) |
| 2008–2010 | Fenerbahçe | 6 | (0) |
| 2009–2010 | → Eskişehirspor (loan) | 14 | (1) |
| 2010–2012 | Trabzonspor | 72 | (55) |
| 2012–2016 | Galatasaray | 105 | (65) |
| 2016–2017 | Beijing Guoan | 28 | (19) |
| 2017–2018 | Trabzonspor | 32 | (28) |
| 2018–2020 | Beşiktaş | 40 | (24) |
| 2020–2022 | Lille | 59 | (20) |
| 2022–2023 | Fortuna Sittard | 26 | (9) |
| Total | 507 | (253) | |
| International career | |||
| 2001 | Turkey U17 | 8 | (1) |
| 2002–2003 | Turkey U18 | 10 | (0) |
| 2002–2004 | Turkey U19 | 17 | (0) |
| 2004–2005 | Turkey U20 | 11 | (2) |
| 2006 | Turkey U21 | 7 | (0) |
| 2006 | Turkey B | 1 | (1) |
| 2006–2022 | Turkey | 77 | (31) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2023 | Beşiktaş (interim) | ||
| 2024 | Kayserispor | ||
| 2025 | Kasımpaşa | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Burak Yılmaz (born 15 July 1985) is a famous Turkish football coach and former player. He played as a forward, which means he was a goal scorer. Most recently, he coached the Süper Lig club Kasımpaşa.
Burak Yılmaz is special because he is one of only two players who have played for the "Big Three" clubs in Istanbul (Beşiktaş, Fenerbahçe, and Galatasaray) and also for Trabzonspor. His father, Fikret Yılmaz, was also a goalkeeper for Antalyaspor.
Burak started his football journey at Antalyaspor. He became a professional player in 2002. After playing for Antalyaspor for four seasons, he joined Beşiktaş in 2006. He also played for Manisaspor and Fenerbahçe.
His career really took off when he joined Trabzonspor in 2010. There, he became the top scorer in the 2011–12 season with 33 goals. He then moved to Galatasaray, where he won two Süper Lig titles and was the top scorer again in 2012–13.
Later, he played for Chinese Super League club Beijing Guoan and returned to Trabzonspor and Beşiktaş. In 2020, he joined French club Lille and helped them win their first league title in ten years. He finished his playing career at Fortuna Sittard in the Netherlands.
Burak Yılmaz also played for the Turkish national team from 2006 to 2022. He is Turkey's second all-time highest goalscorer with 31 goals.
Contents
Playing Career Highlights
Starting at Antalyaspor
Burak Yılmaz began his professional football journey at Antalyaspor when he was just 16 years old. He scored his first two goals in the 2004–05 season. In that season, he played 29 league matches and scored 8 goals. This helped his team avoid being moved down to a lower league.
In the 2005–06 season, he scored 9 goals in 24 matches. His efforts helped Antalyaspor get promoted to the Süper Lig, which is the top football league in Turkey. Overall, he played 70 league games for Antalyaspor and scored 17 goals.
Time at Beşiktaş
In the summer of 2006, Yılmaz joined Beşiktaş. He made his Süper Lig debut on 6 August 2006. He scored his first goal for Beşiktaş against Konyaspor in a 3–1 win. In his first season, he scored 5 goals in 30 league games. Beşiktaş finished second in the league that year. He also played in the Turkish Cup, scoring once.
His performance was not as strong in the 2007–08 season. In January 2008, he moved to Manisaspor as part of a player exchange. Later, on 29 June 2008, he joined Fenerbahçe.
Playing for Fenerbahçe
Burak Yılmaz joined Fenerbahçe on 29 June 2008. He was given the number 7 shirt. However, his time at Fenerbahçe was not very successful. He played only six games in the 2008–09 season and did not score any goals.
Success at Trabzonspor
In February 2010, Yılmaz moved to Trabzonspor. This move changed his career for the better. Under the coach Şenol Güneş, he started to play much better. He made his Trabzonspor debut on 15 February 2010.
He helped Trabzonspor win the Turkish Cup in 2010, beating Fenerbahçe 3–1. He also scored a goal against Fenerbahçe in a league match that helped Bursaspor win the league title instead. In July 2011, he signed a new four-year contract with Trabzonspor.
In the 2010–11 season, Yılmaz scored important goals against Beşiktaş, Galatasaray, and Bursaspor. Trabzonspor finished second in the league that season. In the 2011–12 season, he scored an amazing 33 goals in 34 league games. This set a new club record for Trabzonspor.
Joining Galatasaray
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In July 2012, Yılmaz joined Galatasaray from Trabzonspor. The transfer fee was €5 million, and he signed a four-year contract. He earned €2.3 million per season.
On 2 September 2012, he scored his first goal for Galatasaray against Bursaspor. This goal was special because it was Galatasaray's 1000th league win in history. On 28 October 2012, Yılmaz scored his 100th career goal in a 3–0 win against Kayserispor.
He also did very well in the Champions League. On 7 November 2012, Burak scored three goals (a hat-trick) in a 3–1 win against CFR Cluj. He was the first Turkish player to score three goals in a Champions League game since Tuncay Şanlı. He finished the group stage as a top scorer with 6 goals. Galatasaray reached the quarter-finals, where they were knocked out by Real Madrid.
On 23 November 2013, Burak scored his 100th Süper Lig goal against Sivasspor. During his four seasons at Galatasaray, he won two Süper Lig titles in 2012–13 and 2014–15. He also won two Turkish Cups and two Turkish Super Cups.
Playing in China
On 5 February 2016, Yılmaz moved to the Chinese Super League club Beijing Guoan. The transfer fee was €8 million. He played for two seasons in China and scored 28 goals in total.
Returning to Turkey
On 2 August 2017, Yılmaz returned to Trabzonspor for a second time. He scored 23 goals in 25 matches during the 2017–18 season.
For the 2018–19 season, Yılmaz went back to Beşiktaş for another spell. He scored 25 goals in 40 official games during this time.
Moving to France with Lille
On 1 August 2020, Yılmaz joined the French club Lille. He signed a two-year contract. He made his Ligue 1 debut on 22 August 2020. On 4 October 2020, he scored his first league goal for Lille.
On 25 April 2021, he scored two goals in a 3–2 comeback win against Lyon. On 23 May 2021, he scored a penalty in a 2–1 win against Angers. This goal helped Lille win their fourth Ligue 1 title in their history. He was the first player since Moussa Sow to score at least 15 goals in his first Ligue 1 season for Lille.
Final Playing Days
On 21 June 2022, Yılmaz signed a five-year contract with Eredivisie club Fortuna Sittard in the Netherlands. The first two years were as a player, and the last three were planned as a coach. He made his debut on 6 August, scoring his first goal from a free-kick.
On 5 June 2023, Burak Yılmaz announced his retirement from playing football at the age of 37.
International Career
Burak Yılmaz played for different Turkish youth teams from 2001 to 2006. He made his first appearance for the senior Turkish national team on 12 April 2006. This was in a friendly match against Azerbaijan.
On 3 June 2011, he scored his first goal for Turkey against Belgium. He was part of the Turkish squad for UEFA Euro 2016 and UEFA Euro 2020.
On 24 March 2021, he scored his first international hat-trick in a 4–2 win over the Netherlands during the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification. He played his last game for Turkey on 24 March 2022 against Portugal. He scored a goal in that match but missed a penalty, and Turkey lost 3–1. After this game, he announced his retirement from international football. With 31 goals, he is Turkey's second-highest goalscorer of all time.
Managerial Career
Coaching at Beşiktaş
After retiring as a player, Burak Yılmaz became an assistant coach for Beşiktaş on 1 July 2023. His first match as a manager was a 2–0 home win over İstanbulspor on 8 October 2023.
On 10 October 2023, he was appointed as the interim (temporary) manager of Beşiktaş. He stepped down from this role a month later, after Beşiktaş was eliminated from European competitions.
Coaching at Kayserispor
On 28 January 2024, Kayserispor announced that Burak Yılmaz was their new manager.
Personal Life
Burak Yılmaz is the son of Fikret Yılmaz, who was also a professional footballer and manager. Burak has two daughters with his wife, İstem Atilla. They were married from 2014 to 2018, then remarried in 2020.
He has said that he has been a Beşiktaş fan since he was a child. His football hero is Sergen Yalçın, and he grew up watching him play. In 2020, Yılmaz became an official member of the Beşiktaş club congress.
Honours and Awards
Burak Yılmaz won many trophies and awards during his playing career:
Beşiktaş
- Turkish Cup: 2006–07
Trabzonspor
- Turkish Cup: 2009–10
- Turkish Super Cup: 2010
Galatasaray
- Süper Lig: 2012–13, 2014–15
- Turkish Cup: 2013–14, 2014–15
- Turkish Super Cup: 2013, 2015
Lille
- Ligue 1: 2020–21
- Trophée des Champions: 2021
Individual Awards
- Süper Lig Player of the Season: 2012–13
- Süper Lig Top Scorer: 2011–12, 2012–13
- Süper Lig Forward of the Season: 2010–11, 2011–12, 2012–13, 2018–19
- Süper Lig Team of the Season: 2014–15, 2017–18, 2018–19
- UNFP Player of the Month: April 2021
- Ligue 1 Goal of the Year: 2020–21
- Lille Player of the Season: 2020–21
Images for kids
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Yılmaz in 2023
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Yılmaz in 2012
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Yılmaz in 2014
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Yılmaz with Turkey in 2011
See also
In Spanish: Burak Yılmaz para niños
