Tanju Çolak facts for kids
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 10 November 1963 | ||
| Place of birth | Samsun, Turkey | ||
| Playing position | Forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Samsun Yolspor | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1982–1987 | Samsunspor | 157 | (123) |
| 1987–1991 | Galatasaray | 124 | (116) |
| 1991–1993 | Fenerbahçe | 54 | (50) |
| 1993–1994 | İstanbulspor | 19 | (17) |
| Total | 354 | (306) | |
| National team | |||
| 1980–1982 | Turkey U18 | 14 | (?) |
| 1982–1985 | Turkey U21 | 10 | (4) |
| 1984–1991 | Turkey | 31 | (9) |
|
|||
Tanju Çolak (born 10 November 1963) is a famous Turkish former football player. He played as a forward, which means he was mainly responsible for scoring goals.
Contents
Tanju Çolak's Club Career
Tanju Çolak was born in Samsun, Turkey. He started his football journey with a team called Samsun Yolspor. In 1981, he joined Samsunspor. He quickly became a top player there. He was the highest goal scorer in the league for two seasons in a row: 1985–86 and 1986–87.
Moving to Galatasaray and Fenerbahçe
After his success at Samsunspor, Tanju Çolak moved to Galatasaray in 1987. This was a big step in his career. In the 1987–88 season, he scored an amazing 39 goals. This made him the top scorer in all of Europe! Because of this, he won the European Golden Boot award. This award is given to the highest goal scorer in European leagues. Tanju Çolak is the only Turkish footballer to ever win this special award.
He continued to score many goals. In the 1991–92 season, he was again the top scorer in the Turkish league. After that season, he moved to another big club, Fenerbahçe.
Breaking and Setting Records
Tanju Çolak scored a total of 240 goals in the Turkish Super League. This made him the all-time leading goal scorer in the league's history. He broke the record held by the legendary player Metin Oktay. Tanju achieved this incredible feat in just nine seasons, playing between 1982 and 1993. His record stood for many years. Later, in the 2007–08 season, another great player named Hakan Şükür broke Tanju's record.
Playing for Turkey's National Team
Tanju Çolak also played for the Turkish national team. He represented his country in 31 matches. During these games, he scored 9 goals for Turkey.
Tanju Çolak's Personal Life
Tanju Çolak has a younger brother named Yücel Çolak. Yücel was also a professional football player, just like Tanju.
After his football career, Tanju Çolak became involved in politics for a short time. He was a candidate for the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) in 2009. He also ran as a candidate for the Justice and Development Party (AKP) in the 2011 Turkish Parliament elections.
Awards and Honours
Tanju Çolak won many awards and honours during his football career.
Team Honours
Galatasaray
- Süper Lig: 1987–88 (They won the league championship)
- Turkish Cup: 1990–91 (They won the main cup competition)
- Turkish Super Cup: 1988 (They won a super cup match)
Individual Honours
- Gol Kralı (Top Scorer in Turkish League): 1985–86, 1986–87, 1987–88, 1990–91, 1992–93 (He was the top scorer five times!)
- European Golden Boot: 1987–88 (He was the top scorer in Europe)
- IFFHS Legends (Recognized as a football legend by IFFHS)
Other Career Achievements
- Lifetime Goal Total: He scored 240 goals in 252 matches. This was a record for the most goals scored by one player in the Turkish league for a long time.
- Most Goals in a Season: He scored 39 goals in the 1987–1988 season while playing for Galatasaray. This was an incredible achievement.
- Most Goals in a Match: He once scored 6 goals in a single match during the 1992–1993 season for Fenerbahçe.
- European Top Scorer Rankings:
- 3rd place in Europe: 33 goals in 1985–1986 (at Samsunspor)
- 1st place in Europe: 39 goals in 1987–1988 (at Galatasaray)
- 2nd place in Europe: 31 goals in 1990–1991 (at Galatasaray)
See also
In Spanish: Tanju Çolak para niños
