| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Sercan Yıldırım | ||
| Date of birth | April 5, 1990 | ||
| Place of birth | Bursa, Turkey | ||
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||
| Playing position | Striker | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Galatasaray | ||
| Number | 90 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2004–2007 | Bursaspor | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2007–2011 | Bursaspor | 81 | (23) |
| 2011– | Galatasaray | 10 | (0) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2005 | Turkey U15 | 3 | (1) |
| 2006 | Turkey U16 | 10 | (12) |
| 2005–2007 | Turkey U17 | 12 | (4) |
| 2007–2008 | Turkey U18 | 8 | (4) |
| 2007–2009 | Turkey U19 | 17 | (9) |
| 2008–2009 | Turkey U21 | 4 | (1) |
| 2009– | Turkey[1] | 10 | (2) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 5 September 2011. † Appearances (Goals). |
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Sercan Yıldırım (pronounced [ˈseɾdʒan ˈjɯɫdɯˈɾɯm]; born 5 April 1990) is a Turkish footballer playing for Galatasaray[2] as a striker and also for the Turkish national team. In 2011 he was placed 20th in the FIFA ranking of Europe's Most Promising Young Players.[3]
Contents |
2007–08 season
Yıldırım started his career at Bursaspor. He broke into the first team in the 2007–08 season making his league debut as a second half substitute in a 1–0 away defeat at Istanbul B.B in September 2007. He scored his first senior goal for the club three games later in a 2–0 win at Kasımpaşa. His first season saw him only featured eight times for the senior team.
2008–09 season
The 2008–09 season saw him score four goals in as many games getting a brace against both Gençlerbirliği in the second game of the season and also against Kocaelispor two games later. He also got on the scoresheet against Galatasaray in October 2008. His great start to the season caught the eye of bigger European clubs. In October 2008 it was rumoured that Manchester United[4][5] were interested in him. The 2008–09 season saw him finish as Bursaspor's top goalscorer in both the league and in all competitions, netting 11 goals in 30 appearances in the Super Lig and 14 goals in 35 appearances in all competitions.
There was much speculation in the summer 2009 transfer window regarding his transfer from Bursaspor. Istanbul giants Fenerbahçe were thought to be most likely to sign him, although there were stories saying that,[6] Manchester City,[7] Wigan Athletic[8] were also interested in him. Throughout the summer speculation continued with Manchester United, and they were said to be preparing a £3.5m bid for the stiker.[9] However, no move occurred and in early August he started the season playing for Bursaspor.
2009–10 season
At the beginning of the 2009–10 Süper Lig season, Yıldırım again got off to a flying start, scoring two goals in as many games, in a win over Kasımpaşa and a defeat to Eskişehirspor. After an injury in September he was sidelined for six weeks. He returned to action in November. He scored a hat-trick in a Turkish Cup game against Sivasspor in January 2010, sending Bursaspor through to the semi-finals against Fenerbahce. In May 2010 Green Crocs were crowned Champions, by just a single point. They are only the second club outside the Istanbul "Big Three" who have won the league. Trabzonspor were the other team, who last won in 1984.
2010-11 season
Like the year before, Sercan started well and scored the only goal in Bursaspor's 1-0 victory in the opening match against Konyaspor. In March 2011, he was close to signing a 4-year contract with the Russian side FC Lokomotiv Moscow, but he failed his physical due to knee problems and Lokomotiv decided not to sign him.[10]
On 5 September 2011, after days of negotiation, Bursaspor finally agreed on a price with Galatasaray for Sercan. He agreed on a five year deal (until the 2015-2016 season) with Turkish club. The club paid a €3 million + Musa Çağıran to Bursaspor[11]
He gave an assist to Johan Elmander with his backheel on 9 September 2011 in a game between Galatasaray and Samsunspor which Galatasaray won 3-1
Yıldırım has played at every age group for the Turkish Youth International Team. Whilst playing for the Under-16 level during 2006, he scored 12 goals in 10 games, including a hattrick and three braces. He currently has four caps for the senior squad.[1] He received his first call up to the Turkish senior squad by Fatih Terim in March 2009, for two 2010 World Cup Qualifying games against Spain,[12] however he was an unused substitute.[13][14] He made his debut for Turkey in a friendly against Azerbaijan on 2 June 2009, coming on as a second half substitute for Tuncay Şanlı.[15] On 12 August 2009, in a friendly against the Ukraine, he registered 2 assists in Turkey's 3–0 win.[16] He scored his first goal for Turkey on 5 September 2009 in Turkey's World Cup qualification game against Estonia.[17]
Correct as of 5 September 2011 [18]
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Europe | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| Bursaspor | 2007–08 | 8 | 1 | 3 | 0 | - | - | 11 | 1 | |
| 2008–09 | 30 | 11 | 5 | 3 | - | - | 35 | 14 | ||
| 2009–10 | 21 | 4 | 4 | 3 | - | - | 25 | 7 | ||
| 2010–11 | 22 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 31 | 8 | ||
| Total | 81 | 23 | 15 | 6 | 6 | 1 | 103 | 30 | ||
| Galatasaray | ||||||||||
| 2011–12 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | 10 | 0 | ||
| Total | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | 10 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 91 | 23 | 15 | 6 | 6 | 1 | 113 | 30 | ||
Correct as of 26 May 2010 [18]
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 5 September 2009 | Kadir Has Stadium, Kayseri, Turkey | Estonia | 2–1 | 4–2 | 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 2. | 26 May 2010 | Veterans Stadium, New Britain, Connecticut | Northern Ireland | 1–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
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