Turk It Or Leave It - My Story

[Timmi29]

FOREWORD (Sat. 1st August 2009)

It is quite a busy time for us. We have had a 10 day training camp here in Marbella during which we have taken in games against Torremolinos, Fuengirola and also the home town side today. We then head to Prague and Turkey respectively. The Prague match is part of Tomas Hubschman’s transfer to us in the January window. We then fly to Turkey for a pre-season tour taking in games against my old clubs Eskisehirspor and Galatasaray, as well as a match against Trabzonspor. The Gala match I am hoping will help to try and repair the relationships that suffered around the end of my tenure.

Tonight is another calm and sultry evening after a searing Andalucian day. I have just had dinner with the team and we have all retired for an evening of relaxation. Some of the players are using the complex facilities whilst others are getting ready to let their hair down at a club or at one of the casinos.

I, on the other hand, am sitting down for the first time to work on my biography.

Why am I doing this you may ask? Well two weeks ago I attended a function organised by my employer, Atletico Madrid chairman, Enrique Cerezo. During the evening I met and talked to the Spanish head of an international publisher. During the conversation he suggested that if my stock continued to rise, I may attract interest from publishers wanting to produce a book. He advised me that it might be worth getting things down on paper and then see where things progress. So here goes….

[Timmi29]

FOREWORD (Sat. 1st August 2009)

It is quite a busy time for us. We have had a 10 day training camp here in Marbella during which we have taken in games against Torremolinos, Fuengirola and also the home town side today. We then head to Prague and Turkey respectively. The Prague match is part of Tomas Hubschman’s transfer to us in the January window. We then fly to Turkey for a pre-season tour taking in games against my old clubs Eskisehirspor and Galatasaray, as well as a match against Trabzonspor. The Gala match I am hoping will help to try and repair the relationships that suffered around the end of my tenure.

Tonight is another calm and sultry evening after a searing Andalucian day. I have just had dinner with the team and we have all retired for an evening of relaxation. Some of the players are using the complex facilities whilst others are getting ready to let their hair down at a club or at one of the casinos.

I, on the other hand, am sitting down for the first time to work on my biography.

Why am I doing this you may ask? Well two weeks ago I attended a function organised by my employer, Atletico Madrid chairman, Enrique Cerezo. During the evening I met and talked to the Spanish head of an international publisher. During the conversation he suggested that if my stock continued to rise, I may attract interest from publishers wanting to produce a book. He advised me that it might be worth getting things down on paper and then see where things progress. So here goes….

[Timmi29]

THE EARLY DAYS

I was born on the 29th October 1968 in Munster, Germany. My father was a serving British soldier and my mother a German national. My parents separated soon after and I have not seen my father since the age of 4. We stayed in my mother’s home town of Osnabruck and I led a fairly standard German childhood. I did well academically but was only really interested in getting out on the football pitch.

In my teens, I was spotted by a scout, Hermann Schmidt, and had various trials with my local side VfL Osnabruck. I eventually impressed enough for a part-time contract around my 17th birthday but I struggled to make a real impact due to injuries and my studies at university. I fancied a year away from my studies and a loan spell with SC07 Paderborn was agreed. With the extra concentration on my game I came on leaps and bounds in that season.

I went back to VfL with renewed vigour and confidence and produced two seasons of good football at right back. My endeavours were spotted by Kaiserslautern and a transfer in the summer of 1990 followed. They had just won the German cup and were aiming to really challenge for the title in ’91. I knew when I signed that I would be a fringe player but I couldn’t be sure another opportunity would come.

Within a couple weeks I had met my future wife, Harika. She, like me, is of mixed parentage; a Turkish father and a Swiss mother. Her family moved from Zurich to Munich in the mid 80’s and she started work with MTV Europe. We met at a gig and things progressed from there. Our careers seemed to take off together. I was playing well for the Kaiser ‘A’ side and my wife became a TV presenter with MTV. My performances were recognised by the first team coaching staff and I moved up to the first team squad the following summer.

My playing career ended prematurely in the 95-96 season due to injury. I had had problems with my left knee for a while and after numerous unsuccessful surgeries, the doctors advised me to call it a day. We won the cup that season but were also relegated. It was a frustrating season and I felt helpless on the sidelines. 1FCK had been a reasonable force in German and European football during my playing time there but personal glory had eluded me.

So at the grand old age of 27 I started to coach. I obtained my badges over a couple of years and I worked with the 1FCK youth set up. I put a lot of effort into my work which probably came from the frustration of my curtailed playing career. I travelled to various clubs in many different countries to learn as much as I could. If I was going to make a name for myself this was going to be the way.

[Timmi29]

THE FIRST BITE OF TURKISH DELIGHT

I had been coaching at Kaiserslautern for just over 7 years during which time my wife continued her TV work. She felt it may have been time to move on. We travelled to Turkey for her to discuss some TV work there. Whilst we were there, we spent time visiting some of her family in the Ankara area. I met my wife’s cousin, Hakan, for the first time. He worked in the commercial department of Eskisehirspor, a Turkish Second Division Category B side. We had a few conversations over the next couple of days which resulted in him asking me to visit the club and discuss some possibilities at the request of the club chairman, Ali Celikoglu.

Celikoglu seemed an honest and decent man. He wanted a lot for the club and was as much a fan of the club as anyone. The heady days of the late 60’s and early 70’s seemed a long way away and had left a cloud over the clubs current position. A Turkish cup triumph and consistent good performances in the league had the fans hankering after glory again, but seemingly unwilling to give it time to happen.

The Eskhisehir Ataturk held over 18000 and had reasonable facilities all round. The club had all the pre-requisites of a good side but just needed a catalyst to ignite everything.

That apparently was where I might fit in. Celikoglu was a follower of German football and Kaiserslautern in particular. He remembered my playing days and what had happened with regards to my injuries. He also knew I had been working with the youth development programme and was gaining a bit of name in coaching circles.

He offered me the chance to start my managerial career with the club in the hope that I might be the aforementioned catalyst.

After thinking about our offers for the next few days my wife and I decided it was time for us both to try something new. My predecessor, Sevket Kesler, was going to see out the remainder of the season and I would officially take charge of Eskisehirspor, on the 1st July 2003.

[Timmi29]

ESKISEHIRSPOR

2003-2004

I was nervous and a little bewildered during my first days in office. Coaching and managing can sometimes be a whole world apart. It had taken longer than expected to finalise things in Germany and I was not as prepared as I would like to have been. Turkish isn’t the easiest language to learn and I didn’t know much apart from the odd swear word or insult. Though admittedly, it did come in handy when overhearing some player comments and opinions though!

Despite the language barrier, I managed to have some useful discussions with the coaching staff. They gave a good insight into how things stood and they helped me identify some of our strengths and weaknesses. Without wanting to sound harsh, I came to the conclusion that we didn’t have many strengths. I had two good left backs, one good striker and the one real plus, was having what looked like the strongest central midfield pairing in the league. Hossoy Engin and Gundogdu Levent were two players I could build a team around, if given the right support from the board. I decided that a traditional 4-4-2 would be the way forward and I went to work on the training ground to educate the squad on how I wanted to play.

Within a few days, I had set about the player market and made two permanent signings. The first being a strong centre back (Bastik Cihan) and the second was a hard tackling midfielder (Buyukbayrak Serhat), who seemed a good alternative to what I had. Another centre back, a winger a piece for each flank and a striker were also added to the squad on season long loan contracts. The signings made me feel more confident about the season ahead. A confidence which increased after good performances in pre-season friendlies.

The form carried into the new season and we made a healthy start. I think I raised a few eyebrows early on with my team selections. I played Neliker Soner, a left back, in the centre of defence and fan favourite Levent, was rotated between all 4 midfield positions. It may not have been Ruud Gullit’s “sexy football†but we were defensively tight and got into the habit of sneaking victories.

I was enjoying my new career but I did make mistakes. One concerned a young player by the name of Sevgi Mustafa. Although I was a keen advocator of youth in Germany, when it came to me making the decision myself, I had trouble going with my instincts. Mustafa played well whenever called upon and always seemed to have the measure of opposition defenders. I initially resisted making him a first choice striker as we had some good experienced players. Yanik Ferdi, a loan signing was playing well but Mayadag Baris, the club’s star striker was struggling with consistency. I persevered with Baris but as results started to falter around October and November, I finally plucked up the courage to give Mustafa a chance. He took it well and made it a decision I never had to regret. He ended the season our top scorer with 18 goals and was voted fan’s player of the year.

The season’s crunch game was a top of the table clash at home to Gungoren Belediyespor. If we had lost it may have cost us our season as only the league champions are promoted. We went into the game missing key players but produced some quality football on a slick surface in front of 7800 fans. Goals evaded us in the first half even though we created chance upon chance. The deadlock was finally broken on 55 minutes when youngster Parlak Ahmet headed home. A rebound from his shot gave Yanik Ferdi a tap in before Neliker Soner scored a third from a corner. Keles Soner rounded things off on 90 minutes, drilling home from the edge of the box. The 4-0 win over our close rivals gave us the boost we needed and we went on to secure the title and promotion a month later.

[Timmi29]

2004-2005

Everyone at the club was on a high after winning the title the previous season. I was given a reasonable transfer budget for the upcoming season, but we couldn’t really afford much of an increase on wages. We could make some additions to the squad but the €2.4K maximum wage limit meant I would struggle to add real quality to the side. During July and August it was hectic, with departures and signings alike. We managed to make 200K with three sales including Mayadag Baris, who just didn’t seem to fit into my system. Demirkan Hakan and Dasdan Bulent were added to play down our right side whilst Yavas Mithat was signed, on a free, to play up front with 21yo Mustafa. The further loan signings of Yildirim Erman (Fenerbahce) and keeper Taylan Aydogan from Dutch side Roda made me quietly confident of causing a few upsets in the upcoming season.

Disaster struck just before the summer window closed when we lost one of our key players, Gundogdu Levent. When I arrived at the club both Levent and Hossoy Engin were in the final year of their contracts. I had to include release fee clauses (€1M) in their new contracts, as my wage budget was tight. Unluckily for me, fellow Second Division Cat. A side Kocaelispor decided to exercise the clause. A player of his class is virtually impossible to replace without good financial resources and I knew it would be a void that would take a long time to fill.

Levent came back to haunt me just 2 games into the season. We travelled to the tiny Ismet Pasa stadium in Kocaeli. We, somewhat undeservedly, went ahead after the break with Engin converting a penalty won by Mithat, who was pushed over in the box. Within two minutes they were level. Levent skipped past a number of challenges before crashing a drive from the edge of the box. Aydogan saved superbly only for it to fall to opposition feet. 1-1. Alper made it 2-1 to the home side when he converted another loose ball from the keeper. Levent again was the architect as his wicked, curling cross had almost beaten Aydogan. Levent continued to cause problems until the final whistle and was rightly announced as Man of the Match. I congratulated him afterwards on his performance and he in turn thanked me for helping to kick-start his career.

The three relegated sides - Konyaspor, Malatyaspor and Akcaabat Sebatspor - were favourites to go back up but I felt we had an outside chance if we played to our potential. After our indifferent start, things picked up around the middle of October. We went on a 7 game league run (winning 5) where we didn’t concede a goal, only to follow that by losing three on the bounce.

This led us, at the end of January 2005, to our home game with Kocaelispor. We got our revenge with a cracking performance. 3-0 up inside 11 minutes was more than I could have hoped for and we outplayed them for the full 90 minutes, even if we couldn’t add to our opening salvo.

Home form like this kept us in the hunt as fellow promotion rivals were taking points off each other. 17 points from a possible 21 at the end of the season catapulted us in to second position and one of three promotions spots. In just two seasons we had risen from the depths of obscurity and we were on the verge of the returning to the proverbial big time.

We scored goals from a number of sources through the season but Sevgi Mustafa was again top scorer with 15, in a year when he also gained national recognition for the under-21’s. The best example of our goal scoring prowess was when we set a new club record, which still stands now, with a 6-0 home victory over Antalyaspor. Two identical headed corners from Neliker Soner started things before Mustafa, Engin, Serhat and finally loanee Hamza Samari finished our scoring.

During this league campaign I experienced Turkish cup football for the first time. The fans were out in force to cheer us on through the early rounds as we disposed of 3 decent sides including Premier Division Elazigspor. This led to a home quarter final clash, in February, with Samsunspor, who later in the season became Premier Division champions.

Once again home advantage and our set piece excellence paid dividends. The 4-1 score line did flatter us immensely as the game was generally even. Midfield was well contested and Tuncay Arslan and Bastik Cihan were rock solid in the centre of our defence, giving nothing for the opposition strikers to work from.. Back up striker Aksoy Ilkan scored our first from a corner before loanee Ergun Cakir tapped in our second from a rebound from a Mustafa effort. Demirkan Hakan conceded a penalty just before half time to allow the Premier Division side back in. Aykut Serkan grabbed the goal which turned out to be Samsun’s only reply. The second half saw us go further ahead with Hossoy Engin converting a self won penalty. Bastik Cihan rounded off a fine performance two minutes from time with a bullet header from another corner.

For the semi-final we travelled to Istanbul and the mighty 80000+ capacity Ataturk Olympic Stadium, to face the residents, Galatasaray. Atmospherically it isn’t as intimidating as the Ali Sami Yen, but the attending crowd of 33500+ was much bigger than we previously played in front of. It was an odd experience hearing so much noise in what looked like a fairly empty stadium.

Sadly we were not up to this challenge and we were easily outclassed. Gala ended the contest before half time with three goals from wonderful flowing moves. Penbe Ergun headed the first; Hasan Sas tapped in a second before Buruk Okan volleyed home a third on 45 minutes. In first half stoppage time Dasdan Bulent saw red and we lost a second player to injury. Sevgi Mustafa followed Yavas Mithat to the physio’s room. Mustafa had earlier missed a 35th minute penalty. Haspolatli Cihan volleyed Gala’s fourth on 48 before we scored a consolation, from a corner, with Neliker Soner’s header.

The unlikely cup dream had ended but the whole town had backed us and we had a right to feel proud and believe we could mix it with Turkey’s best

[Raptor]

This is good stuff. Summarising it well

[Timmi29]

2005-2006

The first priority for the summer was to assess what we needed if we were going to carry on our good work. A reasonable pot of transfer funds was available and I had received the green light to add to our wage bill.

To be honest we needed to strengthen our whole squad and 5 new players arrived for less than €750K, which further increased my reputation for finding a bargain. First up was striker Ibrahima Bakayoko who signed on a free from Osasuna. The prospect of playing consistent first team football was the clincher, as he had only played a handful of games in two years. We had previously used loaned in goalkeepers for two seasons and I signed a young Finn, Niki Maenpaa, to be my first permanent first team goalkeeper, from French side Lens. Ex-Turkish international forward, Ahmet Dursun joined us as well as Turkish legend Tugay. Blackburn had been looking to sell Tugay the previous summer, but he chose Portuguese side Braga ahead of us. It was understandable considering we were a second division side but the lure of the Premier Division and a chance to do some coaching was enough to persuade him this time. Guinean winger Ibrahima Yattara was the last of my signings as he joined from Turkish giants Trabzonspor. Trabzon had won the league in 2003-04 but shocked Turkish football by getting relegated the following year. This situation made it somewhat easier to prise away the pacey African.

I also felt the need to add to our backroom staff and fellow German Rainer Kokartis and ex-Turkish international Okan Gedikali came aboard in a coaching capacity.

The fixture computer was a little unkind to us. We were to have home games against the big 3 – Galatasaray, Fenerbahce and Besiktas – in the first six weeks. On the positive side if we got anything out of these games it could set us up for a good season. The negative would be 3 home defeats against the big boys would leave us near the foot of the table.

Up first were Fenerbahce and 12000 fans turned out to watch on a cool August Saturday afternoon. Chances were few and far between but we did have the better of the play. Bakayoko, Yattara and Tugay all had reasonable chances but opposition keeper, Biler Recep, earned his side a point and the man of the match award with a cracking performance in a 0-0 draw.

The following Sunday saw Galatasaray make the journey to Eskisehir. We went into the game with a little trepidation as international call ups had deprived us of our African new boys. Add that to the hammering we took last year and the omens did not look good. We had the early play with ex-Besiktas man, Ahmet Dursun causing Gala’s centre back pairing trouble. We could have gone ahead through efforts from winger Dasdan Bulent and Yavas Mithat but again we had come up against a fine keeping performance. Around the half hour mark Umit Karan got the better of Bastik Cihan in a foot race and slotted past Maenpaa. We were unhappy as Tugay had gone down injured and we wanted them to put the ball out. The same man bagged a second before half time with another fine strike. Tugay couldn’t shake off his problem and he departed early in the second half. Losing his influence meant we had no real way back in to the match and legend Hakan Sukur, a sub on the day, powered home from the edge of the area after more good work from Karan. Ahmet Dursun got just rewards for his endeavours as he tallied our solitary repost, with a fine left footed strike. We had played well but were on the end of a 3-1 loss.

The following week saw us lose 2-1 away to Goztepe. It was the worst possible preparation for playing the last of the big boys but I was able to put out my strongest side for the first time since the opening day. The game was tight with equal possession and shot counts. Our exceptional pace and the wet surface helped us zip the ball around and we opened the scoring twenty minutes in. Dursun added to his impressive form with the opener. Bakayoko opened his Eskisehirspor account, with a fine finish after Yattara had outstripped three players. Straight from the kick-off Olcay Senoglu pulled a goal back for the away side. The second half saw us increase our lead with a second for Bakayoko and a goal from captain, Hossoy Engin. Romanian Daniel Pancu pulled back another but it was not enough to stop us running out 4-2 winners.

The Besiktas game was the highlight for us as we didn’t perform that well for the rest of the 2005. Christmas couldn’t come soon enough and I used the break to try and boost confidence. Young Maenpaa had played well for the most part but I wanted more experience between the sticks. The chance to loan Robert Enke, from Alaves, was too tempting and the big German was inspirational for the rest of the season and let very little past him.

Post Christmas we were a whole different side. We disposed of team after team and put together a fantastic run. After losing 1-0 to Fenerbahce, we beat Galatasaray 2-0 and battered Besiktas 5-1.

Even a long term injury to Dursun couldn’t thwart us. Sevgi Mustafa found the step up in class too much but our other back up striker, Senol Ozkan, was a revelation in Dursun’s place. He bagged 17 goals for us during the season and was our top scorer.

We had no chance of taking the Telsim sponsored Turkiye Birinci Ligi but finished a fine fourth behind champions Bursaspor, Fenerbahce and Samsunspor. To finish above Galatasaray and Besiktas was more than we could have hoped for pre-season and I was pleased to hand our captain, Hossoy Engin, his second sucessive fan's player of the year award at our after season party.

[Timmi29]

Thanks Raptor. At least someone is reading this!!

[SoS]

I'm reading it. It's pretty good, I must say.

[Timmi29]

Thanks SoS. The support is appreciated.

THE GLORY DAYS RETURN

Our 2005-2006 cup campaign had a quiet start in front of 4500 fans in the small western town of Yalova. The home side played in the Second Division Category B and were eager to turn over a Premier Division side. Our opposition had a strong defensive set up and had barely conceded any goals all season. I took the opportunity to rest some of our bigger names and offer a chance to fringe players. The game was played on a wet and breezy November evening which did help the home team to level things. After a non eventful first quarter of an hour we won a free kick a few yards from the corner flag. Dasdan Bulent swung the ball in and Keles Soner volleyed home whilst unmarked on the far post. No other chances of note were created until the 70th minute when the underdogs scored an equaliser. A corner was glanced home on the near post by Yalovaspor striker Karabulut Muslum. This was the shock we needed and we kicked out of first gear. Within ten minutes we had scored the winner as Senol Ozkan scored his first of the season as he sped his way through the defence.

This led to a second round match a week later against Gaziantep Buyuksehir Belideyespor. It was another wet evening but this time we had home advantage on our lower division rivals. We had most of the play, and chances, but could not find a way through. I had decided to play a strong side as the opposition were performing well in their league and were on course for promotion to the Premier Division. After spurning chance after chance I brought the hero of the last round in the 85th minute. He won us the tie in the 90th minute with a fine strike from just inside the area.

The third round was over two months later and we were given another home game. This time we were drawn against a side who were one of our rivals in my first season, Marmaris Belediyesi Genclikspor. The match itself was very poor with neither side seemingly having the ability to string some passes together. We went ahead in the second half from an own goal. Yuce Ozan spectacularly lobbed his own keeper whilst challenging Yavas Mithat. The only other moment of any note was our second goal which was in complete contrast to the rest of the game. Keles Soner curled a wonderful 25 yarder to give the fans something to savour.

The quarter final was two weeks later and we were pitted against Fenerbahce. The draw was again kind and home advantage was given to us. Tugay and left back Yenihayat Bulent were not available, but I felt that the side that went out on to the pitch were still good enough to get a result. Things started brightly but it took until the 23rd minute for us to break the deadlock. Senol Ozkan stealing the march on his marker before burying a fine drive. The game was even from then on until the 54th minute when Bastik Cihan was adjudged to have brought down Ates Necati in the box. I still to this day believe the decision was harsh and to make matters worse Cihan received a straight red. An anticipant hush spread round the ground and I couldn’t watch as Akin Serhat ran up to take the spot kick. A mighty cheer arose and I looked up to see my players celebrating. Serhat had got underneath the ball and sent it ballooning over the bar. Fenerbahce did not become downhearted and started to make their numerical advantage count by knocking the ball around. A mixture of fine defending, top class goalkeeping and woeful finishing kept the scoreline at 1-0 until the 81st minute when Akin Serhat drove in a rebound from Akyel Fatih’s long range effort. I started to fear the worst and prayed that we would get through this.

Fenerbahce had the best of the play in extra time but we held out to take the game into the dreaded shoot-out. We went first and our captain, Hossoy Engin slotted home before Serhat atoned for his previous penalty by equalising. Ibrahima Yattara put us 2-1 up before Robert Enke saved at full stretch to deny Aslan Kemal. Bakayoko found the corner to put us 3-1 up and under pressure Bayraktar Hakan skied his attempt. This left our right back Demirkan Hakan to be the possible hero. He duly obliged and finished calmly leading to unbridled scenes of delight and a full scale pitch invasion.

The draw was again kind to us in the next round as we avoided Bursaspor and Besiktas in the semi. We were given an away tie at the only Second Division side left. Mersin Idman Yurdu were our opponents and we made fairly light work of them in a very professional performance. Hossoy Engin opened the scoring on 25 minutes before the excellent Yattara made it 2-0 on 35 minutes. Bakayoko made it 3-0 with 10 minutes to go.

The final was 4 days before the end of the season. We were to play newly crowned champions, Bursaspor and it was up to us to stop them doing the double. We were given home advantage and a packed crowd of 18403 cheered both sides on. We easily had the better of the first half and produced a number of good chances. The only one we took was a penalty converted by Bakayoko after Aksoy Ilkan was fouled. It took until the 55th minute for Bursa to register a shot but then they took over and only a series of world class saves from Robert Enke kept the score in our favour. I thought we had blown it in the 80th minute when Romanian Ioan Viorel Ganea finished of a flowing move. Thankfully the linesman came to our aid as he rightfully signalled Ganea offside. We had chances on the counter but could not add to our tally and the game ended in a 1-0 victory,

The heady days of the 70’s had returned and I was a hero. My performance through the year had earned me the personal accolade of being third in the manager of the year award. I was a happy man but as the summer months got into full swing I started to have my first doubts about how things would be in the future. Should I leave for pastures new or did I want to try and crack the Istanbul monopoly and create a fourth Turkish “super club†to replace the fallen Trabzonspor. I decided to start the new season and see how it would go before making any decisions.

Turkish FA Cup final team –

Robert Enke, Demirkan Hakan, Yenihayat Bulent, Tugay, Tuncay Arslan, Bastik Cihan, Aksoy Ilkan (80 – Buyukbayrak Serhat), Hossoy Engin (capt.), Senol Ozkan (80 – Ahmet Dursun), Ibrahima Bakayoko, Ibrahima Yattara.

Scorer(s) – Ibrahima Bakayoko 36 (pen)

Man of the match – Robert Enke

[Timmi29]

2006-2007

The bonus of European competition, via the UEFA Cup, meant that I could attract players more easily, but it would not be the big names that some of my rivals could get. Full back Ocal Ahmet arrived from floundering Trabzonspor whilst winger Aydin Cetin and midfielder Parlatan Ersan were signed from Denizlispor. Perhaps the biggest coups were signing the young Argentinian defender Gabriel Oyola, on a free from Parma, and the red hot striking prospect Murat Harun from under the noses of the big clubs. Harun was too young for regular first team football but was definitely one for the future. Striker Ahmed Cebe was another signing and he made an immediate impact scoring two debut goals during the season opener against Manisaspor.

Our second competitive game of the season was a UEFA Cup Qualifying game against Latvian side FK Ventspils. Cebe continued his form by heading home from Ocal Ahmet’s cross. 2 minutes into the second half Cebe was pushed over in the opposition penalty area and the new boy converted his own spot kick. Our Latvian opponents offered little threat throughout the match until Oleg Kazmins scored a crucial away goal for Ventspils, heading home from a free kick after some sloppy marking. After being so comfortable throughout the match I was disappointed to be taking such a precarious result to the away leg.

A win and a draw in the next two league games along with the return of some key players led us nicely into our trip to Latvia. The extra team strength made the game a lot easier than it could have been. Hossoy Engin ran virtually unchallenged from just inside our half before firing in an unstoppable 25 yard screamer. Ibrahima Yattara then headed in Dasdan Bulent’s pinpoint cross to make it 2-0. A missed penalty compounded Ventspils misery and we went forward into the UEFA Cup proper with a comfortable aggregate win. Our European adventure looked like it would be short lived when we were paired with Atletico Madrid.

Our next four league games gave us two wins and two draws, scoring 7 goals without reply. This led us to second in the league and we could have had three wins had it not been for an Alpay inspired Fenerbahce who managed to hold out for one of the draws.

We travelled to Madrid just looking to enjoy the experience and to give a good account of ourselves. Even that looked like an impossible dream as just 7 minutes in we found ourselves 2-0 down. Fernando Torres scored twice in the space of two minutes. The first was a tidy finish after picking up a loose ball and the second a fine volley which gave the finish that Kiki Musampa’s fine run and cross deserved. Ahmed Cebe pulled a goal back after a fantastic counter attack. Yattara picked up the ball from an Atletico corner, skipped past two challenges and played a great ball down the channel to Bakayoko. He sucked in the only defender before laying an inviting ball off to Cebe who cracked in the away goal. 2-1 after only 12 minutes! Things quietened down but Atletico were much the better side. Torres got his hat trick after finding some space on the edge of the box and firing home from 20 yards, giving Robert Enke no chance. Going 3-1 up did not help the home side and they started to play poorly. The pace of Yattara, Bakayoko and Cebe started to find gaps and we grabbed a foothold in the game. The final half hour was all us and we were rewarded in the 94th minute when Bastik Cihan headed home from a corner. We had lost 3-2 but it felt like a victory and we were all in a buoyant mood on the plane journey home.

Our momentum continued with an away win at Genclerbirligi and a home victory against Karsiyaka, which took us to the top of the table. Atletico arrived in Eskisehir without the injured Torres which gave me even more hope. In a close game of very few chances we produced perhaps the greatest result in the club’s history. After 1 minute and 16 seconds we had the lead in the tie for the first time. Bastik Cihan headed home from Ersan’s corner. He repeated the feat after 25 minutes in near identical fashion. In the second half Atletico threw bodies forward but failed to create any decent chances. Cebe returned the favour from the first leg as he played in Bakayoko in on a 2 on 1 situation and the Ivorian drove an effort into the top corner giving Andres Palop no chance.

A victory against champions Bursapor and a home win against Samsunspor finished off a fantastic October and was the perfect birthday gift. Less than three weeks later I would be in charge of a different club which I wouldn’t have believed for all the world.

November started with an away victory in the league at Caykur Rizespor. Bologna were the next visitors to the Ataturk in the UEFA Cup. Their side contained Peruzzi, Giannichedda, Rossini, Vampeta, Locatelli and Christian Amoroso but we still managed to completely out play them. Oyola scored his first for the club after only 13 minutes heading home a corner. Cebe scored his 15th of the season on 23 minutes with a good finish from a tight angle. Bakayoko scored two minutes later with a shot that Peruzzi should have dealt with and Cebe’s curling free kick on 75 minutes gave us an unimaginable 4-0 lead. Vampeta scored a consolation goal in the last few minutes but with a good performance in Italy we would be through to the next round.

On Sunday 12th November I took charge of my final Eskisehirspor game. We travelled to Istanbul to take on Galatasaray. Before the match there had been praise from the press about our run in both the league and Europe. Eser Ozaltindere had been receiving different coverage. He had been in charge of Galatasaray for a year and had not moved the club forward. They were third in the league and not playing in Europe which was not good enough for either the fans or the board. The game was fairly tight but we were suffering from tiredness after our exertions three days earlier. Tackles were missed, passes went astray and shots were wayward. The deadlock was broken by the home side when Aydin Musa volleyed home a long free kick from defence. Haspolatli Cihan scored from the spot in the last minute after Bastik Cihan had brought down Ali Gunes. We were still top but our unbeaten record had gone seemingly without much of a fight.

During the post match press interviews I was asked about Ozaltindere’s position and if I would be interested in the Gala job. I said that a big club would always be an attractive proposition but for now I was happy where I was. In traditional press style this was turned around and the Sunday evening headlines read that I had declared interest in the job. The following day Ozaltindere was sacked. During the press conference announcing his departure and claiming that Gala did not have a replacement lined up, I was discussing a contract for his old job. I spoke with my employer, Celikoglu, and he said he would not stand in my way and that the things I had done for the club would not be forgotten. A job in Istanbul would also mean more time with my wife, who was spending most of her days there with work. On Tuesday 14th I officially started work with Galatasaray.

[rocheyuk]

This a very nice story. Well summarised and hopefully to be continued.

[Timmi29]

Thank you very much. Still got quite a bit to do and should go up to around 2012-13. Will probably stop there as the regens take over and I am not a big fan of them.

[Timmi29]

GALATASARAY

2006-2007

Sorting things out and moving to Turkey's largest city properly would have to wait for a while, most probably until Christmas. I was able to avoid a long hotel stay as we had bought a flat in Istanbul 6 months previously, which my wife used whilst working.

I knew I would be under pressure to perform from the off. Club chairman in Turkey are impatient at best. The men in charge of the three big clubs were probably more so than others and Canaydin, the Gala chairman was certainly not a man who had any qualms about firing seemingly incompetent staff. I was the fifth manager in less than three and a half seasons and results were expected instantly. No European competition meant league success was compulsory. A cup win for previous managers had not saved them from the chop so to repeat my success of last year would be an unlikely saviour.

The playing squad was very strong with Colombian Faryd Mondragon as first choice custodian. Cesar Prates joined Turkish internationals Ak Orhan, Hakan Unsal and Penbe Ergun amongst others in defence. Midfield and attack contained the likes of Haspolatli Cihan, Hasan Sas, Buruk Okan, Umit Karan, Sen Fatih, Aydin Musa and Arslan Volkan.

I decided that I would start with an open mind and all the players and staff were to be given a clean slate, though the fact we were nearly two months from the start of the transfer window did help influence my thoughts. I organised a full team meeting for Wednesday morning in which I informed every one of my thoughts and ideals and I outlined how I liked things. After the playing staff had left I had some extra time with the coaching staff, in which I told them that I wanted to introduce the same training regimes and team tactics, that I had used at Eskisehir and that we needed to get started as soon as possible.

The next few days flew by and before I knew it was Sunday and my first game in charge. We headed up to the coastal town of Rize to play the side I had beaten comfortably two weeks previously, with my former employers. Former Turkish international Buruk Okan and youngster Sarioglu Sabri were brought in from the cold, for their first starts of the season and both played well in a difficult game. Hasan Sas’ 20th minute opener was cancelled out by Rubiel Quintana. Sas then followed up Umit Karan’s saved penalty to put us ahead with his second of the game and the season. Parity was restored with just quarter of an hour remaining as Uz Muharrem curled home a wonderful free kick. 4 minutes from time substitute Sen Fatih got on the end of Usta Suat’s long ball and drilled passed a helpless Inan Kerem, to give me the perfect start.

Besiktas, at the Inonu, were our next league opponents in a week in which we also started our cup campaign. We were unlucky to come away with only a point with Ilhan Mansiz equalising in the last minute, to cancel out Umit Karan’s 24th minute strike.

3 successive wins took us into the winter break topping the table and I was pleased with what I had seen so far. The only area I was not happy with was central defence. Ak Orhan was fantastic but whoever had been his partner had struggled and usually allowed opposition chances. Once capped Turkish international Polat Mehmet was a defender who had always impressed me. He was not the quickest around but was an imposing figure in the tackle and in the air. Coupled with Orhan’s lightning pace and other defensive qualities, I would have what seemed the perfect partnership. His release fee of €3.5M was over his market value but definitely good business. Defensive midfielder Ugur Inceman became my second signing for €1.5M, from Trabzonspor, and right back Fatih Sonkaya arrived, from Dutch club Roda, as much needed cover for Cesar Prates. The opportunity to sign Russian forward Vladimir Beschastnykh, on a free from Dortmund, proved too difficult to resist and he signed an 18 month contract on deadline day. Though 4 signings may have seemed a little extravagant, I now had a squad that would not only be strong in domestic football, but would also hopefully be able to impact in Europe when the chance came.

The players were starting to adapt to my playing system and the new players added both solidity and creativity. We remained unbeaten for the rest of the season and ran out comfortable league champions. Along the way we put in fine performances to win against Besiktas, Bursaspor and Samsunspor amongst others. My former club were runners up in the league and it did give me some thoughts of what might have been if I had stayed.

I was very emotional on my first return to the Eskisehir Ataturk, for a league game in late April. The home fans gave me a fantastic reception and it felt good to be back there. To be honest I was happier with the resulting 0-0 draw than I would have been with a win. To have disappointed fans that I had given so much joy to in the past would have been somewhat saddening for me.

My first few months in charge had far exceeded my initial expectations. After finishing 7th, 3rd and 9th over the last three seasons Galatasaray were now back on top and would be competing in the Champions League next season.