Selçuk İnan facts for kids
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İnan playing for the Turkish national team in 2016
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Selçuk İnan | ||
| Date of birth | 10 February 1985 | ||
| Place of birth | İskenderun, Turkey | ||
| Height | 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
|
Current team
|
Kocaelispor (head coach) | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1999–2000 | Karaağaçspor | ||
| 2000–2002 | Dardanelspor | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2002–2005 | Dardanelspor | 76 | (6) |
| 2005–2008 | Manisaspor | 75 | (11) |
| 2008–2011 | Trabzonspor | 93 | (7) |
| 2011–2020 | Galatasaray | 244 | (45) |
| Total | 488 | (69) | |
| International career | |||
| 2001–2002 | Turkey U17 | 8 | (2) |
| 2002 | Turkey U18 | 5 | (1) |
| 2002–2004 | Turkey U19 | 14 | (5) |
| 2004 | Turkey U20 | 9 | (1) |
| 2005–2007 | Turkey U21 | 10 | (3) |
| 2007–2017 | Turkey | 61 | (8) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2020–2022 | Galatasaray (assistant coach) | ||
| 2022–2023 | Kasımpaşa | ||
| 2024–2025 | Gaziantep | ||
| 2025– | Kocaelispor | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Selçuk İnan (born 10 February 1985) is a Turkish professional football manager and former player. He played as a midfielder and was famous for his amazing passing, leadership, and incredible free-kicks. Many people think he is one of the best Turkish midfielders of his time.
He started his career at Dardanelspor and later played for Manisaspor and Trabzonspor. In 2011, he joined the famous club Galatasaray. He became a star player there for nine seasons, winning many trophies and serving as the team captain.
İnan also played for the Turkish national team more than 60 times. He scored a very important free-kick goal against Iceland that helped Turkey qualify for the UEFA Euro 2016 tournament. After he stopped playing in 2020, he became a coach. He is currently the manager of Kocaelispor.
Contents
Playing Career
Early Years
Selçuk İnan was born in İskenderun, Turkey. When he was 14, football scouts saw his talent and he joined a local club called Karaağaçspor. Soon after, he moved to Dardanelspor. He scored his first professional goal when he was only 17 years old.
After Dardanelspor, he played for Manisaspor for three seasons. In 2008, he joined Trabzonspor. He had a great start, scoring two goals in his first league match. At Trabzonspor, he became part of a strong attacking team with strikers Umut Bulut and Burak Yılmaz. With İnan in the midfield, Trabzonspor had two of its best seasons in years.
Success at Galatasaray
2011–2013: Winning Titles
In 2011, İnan joined Galatasaray on a free transfer, which means the club didn't have to pay a fee to sign him. He immediately became a key player in the midfield. He worked well with Brazilian player Felipe Melo, and together they helped Galatasaray play much better. Fans loved him so much they gave him the nickname "Xelçuk," comparing him to the famous Spanish midfielder Xavi.
In his first season, İnan helped Galatasaray win ten matches in a row and finish at the top of the league. He scored 13 goals and made 16 assists, which is an incredible record for a midfielder. He was especially known for his amazing free-kick goals. During the championship party, the fans cheered for him to come on stage twice.
The next season, he continued to be a star. In the 2012 Turkish Super Cup match against rivals Fenerbahçe, he assisted two goals and scored the winning penalty kick in the final minute. Galatasaray won the game 3–2.
2013–2020: Later Years and Retirement
İnan continued to be an important player for Galatasaray for many more years. He helped the team win the Turkish Cup in the 2013–14 season. The next season, he helped them win both the league title and the Turkish Cup.
Even when he had some injuries, he always came back to help the team. He won more trophies, including the Turkish Super Cup several times. In the 2017–18 season, he helped Galatasaray win the league title again under the famous manager Fatih Terim.
In his final season, 2019–20, he played in 13 matches. At the end of the season, Selçuk İnan announced that he was retiring from playing professional football.
International Career
İnan played for Turkey's national teams at every age level, from the under-16 team all the way to the senior team. He played in every game during the qualifying matches for UEFA Euro 2012 and made six assists.
Disagreement with the Manager
During the qualifying matches for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, the manager of the Turkish team, Abdullah Avcı, did not choose İnan to play for several games. This was surprising because İnan was playing very well for Galatasaray. Many fans were upset and didn't understand the manager's decision.
When İnan finally got a chance to play in a match against Estonia, he came on as a substitute and scored a goal right away, helping Turkey win. However, he didn't celebrate his goal, which made people think there was still a problem between him and the manager. Turkey did not qualify for the World Cup that year.
The Famous Free-Kick
İnan is famous for a special goal he scored for Turkey. In a qualifying match for UEFA Euro 2016 against Iceland, the score was 0–0 in the 89th minute. Turkey needed to win to qualify directly for the tournament.
They were awarded a free-kick from far away. İnan stepped up and scored a spectacular goal, sending the ball flying into the net. This incredible goal sent Turkey to the Euro 2016 tournament and is remembered as one of his greatest moments.
Managerial Career
After he stopped playing, İnan decided to become a coach. In 2020, he became an assistant manager at his old club, Galatasaray, working with head coach Fatih Terim.
In November 2022, he got his first job as a head coach at Kasımpaşa. He later became the manager of Gaziantep in March 2024.
On June 3, 2025, İnan was appointed as the new head coach of Kocaelispor, where he is currently managing.
Personal Life
İnan is a private person and doesn't appear in the media very often. He is close friends with his former teammate Burak Yılmaz. They have known each other since they were young and played together on many teams.
İnan married Cemre Kardeş in 2015. They have a daughter named Lisa Alvin, who was born in 2019.
Career Statistics
Club
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Super Cup | Europe | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Dardanelspor | 2002–03 | 2.Lig | 20 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 21 | 2 | ||
| 2003–04 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 14 | 0 | ||||
| 2004–05 | 27 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 28 | 2 | ||||
| 2005–06 | 15 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 15 | 2 | ||||
| Total | 76 | 6 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 78 | 6 | ||||
| Manisaspor | 2005–06 | Süper Lig | 13 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 13 | 3 | ||
| 2006–07 | 32 | 3 | 7 | 0 | — | — | 39 | 3 | ||||
| 2007–08 | 30 | 5 | 4 | 1 | — | — | 34 | 6 | ||||
| Total | 75 | 11 | 11 | 1 | — | — | 86 | 12 | ||||
| Trabzonspor | 2008–09 | Süper Lig | 32 | 3 | 4 | 0 | — | — | 36 | 3 | ||
| 2009–10 | 28 | 2 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 40 | 2 | ||
| 2010–11 | 33 | 2 | 2 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | 37 | 2 | |||
| Total | 93 | 7 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 113 | 7 | ||
| Galatasaray | 2011–12 | Süper Lig | 39 | 13 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 40 | 13 | ||
| 2012–13 | 31 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 42 | 7 | ||
| 2013–14 | 31 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 45 | 9 | ||
| 2014–15 | 32 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 44 | 7 | ||
| 2015–16 | 28 | 11 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 43 | 14 | ||
| 2016–17 | 32 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 36 | 6 | |||
| 2017–18 | 23 | 0 | 8 | 1 | — | 2 | 0 | 33 | 1 | |||
| 2018–19 | 22 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 35 | 2 | ||
| 2019–20 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 11 | 0 | ||
| Total | 244 | 45 | 40 | 10 | 7 | 1 | 38 | 3 | 329 | 59 | ||
| Career total | 488 | 69 | 69 | 11 | 7 | 1 | 42 | 3 | 606 | 84 | ||
International
| Turkey | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Apps | Goals |
| 2007 | 1 | 0 |
| 2008 | 1 | 0 |
| 2009 | 0 | 0 |
| 2010 | 7 | 0 |
| 2011 | 9 | 0 |
| 2012 | 5 | 2 |
| 2013 | 9 | 2 |
| 2014 | 8 | 1 |
| 2015 | 8 | 3 |
| 2016 | 8 | 0 |
| 2017 | 5 | 0 |
| Total | 61 | 8 |
International goals
This table shows the goals Selçuk İnan scored for Turkey.
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 24 May 2012 | Red Bull Arena, Salzburg, Austria |  Georgia |
3–1 | 3–1 | Friendly |
| 2. | 11 September 2012 | Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium, Istanbul, Turkey |  Estonia |
3–0 | 3–0 | 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 3. | 22 March 2013 | Estadi Comunal d'Andorra la Vella, Andorra la Vella, Andorra |  Andorra |
1–0 | 2–0 | |
| 4. | 28 May 2013 | MSV-Arena, Duisburg, Germany |  Latvia |
2–0 | 3–3 | Friendly |
| 5. | 1 June 2014 | Red Bull Arena, New Jersey, United States |  United States |
1–2 | 1–2 | |
| 6. | 3 September 2015 | Konya Metropolitan Municipality Stadium, Konya, Turkey | Latvia |
1–0 | 1–1 | UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying |
| 7. | 10 October 2015 | Generali Arena, Prague, Czech Republic |  Czech Republic |
1–0 | 2–0 | |
| 8. | 13 October 2015 | Konya Metropolitan Municipality Stadium, Konya, Turkey |  Iceland |
1–0 | 1–0 |
Managerial statistics
| Team | Nat | From | To | Record | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Win % | ||||
| Kasımpaşa |  |
22 November 2022 | 18 March 2023 | 13 | 3 | 2 | 8 | 21 | 24 | −3 | 23.08 |
| Gaziantep | |
8 March 2024 | 10 May 2025 | 48 | 20 | 7 | 21 | 68 | 67 | +1 | 41.67 |
| Kocaelispor | |
1 July 2025 | Present | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career total | 61 | 23 | 9 | 29 | 89 | 91 | −2 | 37.70 | |||
Honours
Trabzonspor
- Turkish Cup: 2009–10
- Turkish Super Cup: 2010
Galatasaray
- Süper Lig: 2011–12, 2012–13, 2014–15, 2017–18, 2018–19
- Türkiye Kupası: 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2018–19
- Süper Kupa: 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2019
Individual
- Süper Lig Top Assister 2011–12 (16)
- Süper Lig Midfielder of the Year 2011–12
- Süper Lig Player of the Year 2011–12, by UEFA
See also
In Spanish: Selçuk İnan para niños
