Using WhoScored’s unique rating system we look at the top 5 rated young Süper Lig players. The players in the list are all 21 or under and have played in at least half of the 16 games at the midway point in the season.
Ahmet Yılmaz Çalık – 7.26
Gençlerbirliği means Union of Youth and as their name suggests they focus heavily on developing young players. Çalık has gone from strength to strength since being thrown in at the deep end last April against Fenerbahçe. Gençlerbirliği ended up keeping a clean sheet and winning the game 2-0 and the 20-year-old was then rewarded with a regular place in the first team. At 1.84m Çalık is by no means a towering figure but he is good in the air – winning on average 2.8 aerial duals per-game - and nobody has made more clearances than him (10.7). The young defender is not the complete article just yet and could really do with working on his passing – he currently has a pass success rate of just 76.7%. Turkey has never been particularly well known for producing quality defenders but Çalık could break the mould.
Ozan Tufan – 7.16
Ozan Tufan has made a meteoric rise since breaking onto the scene last September with a goal against Denmark for the Turkish national team. Tufan started out as a right-back but has progressed up the field and now switches between central and attacking right-midfield roles under Bursaspor head coach Şenol Güneş.
The industrious midfielder has kept the defensive tenacity he had as a right-back, averaging 2.7 tackles (11th most in the league) and 1.7 interceptions per game, but also possesses an attacking threat in the final third. The 19-year-old has two goals and has provided two assists this season.
Tufan is fully aware that he must keep developing if he is to really make a name for himself. "I have flaws, I am not perfect, I need to improve in the air, I must become more agile, stronger and faster,” Tufan said following the 4-0 drubbing Turkey suffered at the hands of Brazil in November. The young midfielder has gone from obscurity to stardom in a short space of time and has been linked with moves to the Süper Lig big three – Beşiktaş, Fenerbahçe, Galatasaray - but he has his sights set elsewhere, “my dream is to play for Liverpool.”
Alpaslan Öztürk – 6.95
The latest name off the conveyor belt of Belgian talent is Alpaslan Öztürk. The tough tackling former Birmingham City youth player courted interest from West Ham and Liverpool last summer before being sent out on loan to Kasımpaşa.
Öztürk was born in Antwerp but represents the Crescent-Stars. The 20-year-old midfielder has played as a right-back in the past but Kasımpaşa boss Shota Arveladze has deployed him in a central midfield role. Öztürk has established himself as a first team starter and is as comfortable defending as he is going forwards. The 21-year-old averages an impressive 2 tackles and 1.6 interceptions per game but could do with improving his pass success rate, which stands at just 71.8%. Öztürk has a good understanding of the game for a player of his age in his position and certainly worth keeping a close eye on. Kasımpaşa could very well have themselves an unpolished gem from the capital of diamonds.
Irfan Kahveci – 6.87
“I was playing with a football made out of socks a few years ago and I could only afford the tube to get to training just three months ago”. This is how Kahveci described his sudden, recent transition from reserve to Süper Lig football. The attacking midfielder who grew up idolising Alex de Souza and Ronaldinho already has four goals and two assists in all competitions this season.
Kahveci has the creativity and flair of a playmaker but also has an assiduous side. The 19-year-old gets stuck in, with 1.5 tackles and 1.7 fouls per game and he is often praised for his work rate. Like the last Kahveci to make a name for himself, İrfan sees a future abroad. Nihat Kahveci is still remembered in Spain, while İrfan has his sights set on England, “I have always supported Gençlerbirliği and played here since I was 10 but I dream of playing for Manchester United.”
Bruma – 6.79
Bruma has the failure of Cesare Prandelli to thank for his place in the Top 5. The Portuguese sensation was ignored by the former Italian national team coach and seemed destined to rot on the bench despite arriving in Istanbul as one of the brightest talents at the 2013 Under-20 World Cup with a €10m price tag.
Bruma’s fortunes literally changed overnight, Hamza Hamzaoğlu replaced Prandelli as Galatasaray head coach and played Bruma in his first game in charge. Bruma repaid the favour by scoring against Eskişehirspor in the Turkish Cup. The young winger is an excellent dribbler of the ball, averaging 2.1 dribbles per game in the Süper Lig - fourth highest in the league - and possesses lightening quick acceleration and pace. He was described as being a diamond in the rough in our last article focusing on young talent in the Süper Lig. He still needs quite a lot of polishing but Bruma is starting to sparkle.
Which Süper Lig youngsters have impressed you most this season? Let us know in the comments below
