Aral Şimşir

Aral Şimşir

Personal information
Full name	Doğuhan Aral Şimşir
Date of birth	(2002-06-19) 19 June 2002 (age 22)
Place of birth	Køge, Denmark
Position(s)	Forward
Team information
Current team	Midtjylland
Number	58
Youth career
	HB Køge
2017–2020	Midtjylland
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2020–	Midtjylland	57	(10)
2022	→ Jerv (loan)	20	(3)
2022	→ Lillestrøm (loan)	6	(0)
International career^‡
2017–2018	Denmark U16	9	(3)
2018–2019	Denmark U17	9	(2)
2019	Denmark U18	2	(0)
2020	Denmark U19	1	(0)
2022–	Turkey U21	7	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 21:26, 20 October 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 15 October 2023

Doğuhan Aral Şimşir (born 19 June 2002) is a professional footballer who plays as a forward for Danish Superliga club Midtjylland. Born in Denmark, he was a youth international for Denmark and Turkey.

Club career

Midtjylland

Şimşir was born to Turkish parents in Denmark. His family hails from the Sivas Province in the Central Anatolia Region, which is why he wears the number 58 as his shirt number, the region's registration number.[1] Şimşir initially played in the youth teams of HB Køge before moving to Midtjylland at U15-level.[2]

On 1 June 2020, aged 17, he made his Danish Superliga debut when he came on as a 64th-minute substitute for Anders Dreyer in the 1–0 loss to AC Horsens.[3] Midtjylland advanced to the championship round, where Şimşir played two more matches for the first team, contributing to the club's title victory.[4]

On 22 September 2021, Şimşir scored his first professional goal in a 5–0 win over Kjellerup IF in the Danish Cup.[5]

Loan to Jerv

On 7 March 2022, Şimşir joined Norwegian club Jerv on loan for the 2022 season.[6] He scored his first goal for the club on 18 April, becoming the matchwinner in a 1–0 victory against Kristiansund in Eliteserien.[7][8]

Return to Midtjylland

On 9 June 2023, Şimşir scored the lone goal in a 1–0 win over Viborg FF in the 2022–23 Danish Superliga European play-off match, securing a berth in the 2023–24 UEFA Europa Conference League.[9]

On 29 June 2023, Şimşir signed a new long-term contract with Midtjylland, keeping him at the club until 2028.[10]

During a UEFA Europa League match against Israeli side Maccabi Tel Aviv in October 2024, Şimşir was alleged to have yelled “I hope you die”, “Free Palestine” and “I hope Israel will burn down” to the Maccabi players, causing a brawl between the two teams at the end of the match. UEFA have launched an investigation into Simşir's conduct, while Midtjylland have issued a statement saying it could not accept Maccabi's interpretation of the events.[11][12]

International career

Born in Denmark, Şimşir is of Turkish descent.[1] He formerly represented Denmark internationally, before switching to Turkey with the Turkey under-21s in 2022.[13]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 30 January 2025[14]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National cup[a]		Europe		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Midtjylland	2019–20	Danish Superliga	3	0	0	0	0	0	—		3	0
	2020–21	Danish Superliga	0	0	1	0	0	0	—		1	0
	2021–22	Danish Superliga	1	0	1	1	0	0	—		2	1
	2022–23	Danish Superliga	16	3	—		1[b]	0	—		18	4
	2023–24	Danish Superliga	25	4	2	0	6[c]	0	—		33	4
	2024–25	Danish Superliga	12	3	1	1	11[d]	2	—		24	6
	Total		57	10	5	2	18	2	1	1	81	15
Jerv (loan)	2022	Eliteserien	20	3	3	0	—		—		23	3
Lillestrøm (loan)	2022	Eliteserien	6	0	—		—		—		6	0
Career total			83	13	8	2	18	2	1	1	110	18

1. Includes Danish Cup, Norwegian Football Cup
2. Appearance(s) in UEFA Europa League
3. Appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League
4. Six appearances and two goals in UEFA Champions League, five appearances in UEFA Europa League

References

1. "Danimarka Süper Ligi'nde 3'cü Türk!". Milliyet (in Turkish). 19 June 2020.
2. Nørgaard, Jakob (4 July 2017). "Driblestærk angriber på akademiet". fcm.dk (in Danish). Archived from the original on 10 July 2020.
3. "Midtjylland vs. Horsens – 1 June 2020 – Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 16 January 2022.
4. "FC Midtjylland er dansk mester – TV 2". sport.tv2.dk (in Danish). 9 July 2020.
5. "Kjellerup vs. Midtjylland – 22 September 2021 – Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 21 January 2022.
6. "Angrepsspiller klar for Jerv". FK Jerv (in Norwegian). 7 March 2022. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
7. El-Itr, Obaida (18 April 2022). "Simsir scorede debutmål i snæver Jerv-sejr". bold.dk (in Danish). Archived from the original on 12 May 2022. Retrieved 13 May 2022.
8. "Simsir ble matchvinner for Jerv". Fædrelandsvennen (in Norwegian). 18 April 2022. Archived from the original on 13 May 2022. Retrieved 13 May 2022.
9. "Viborg vs. Midtjylland – 9 June 2023 – Superliga". superliga.dk. Retrieved 9 June 2023.
10. "Aral Simsir sætter signatur på ny lang aftale". FC Midtjylland (in Danish). 29 June 2023. Archived from the original on 29 June 2023. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
11. Vøge, Lasse (8 October 2024). "FCM-stjerne undersøges efter vilde anklager: 'Vidste, det ville ske på et tidspunkt'". www.bt.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 8 October 2024.
12. Grønborg, Af Matias; Bold (7 October 2024). "UEFA starter undersøgelse af Simsir-sag". ekstrabladet.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 8 October 2024.
13. "U-kampe for Danmark: Nu er han udtaget for Tyrkiet". Tipsbladet.dk.
14. Aral Şimşir at Soccerway. Retrieved 1 June 2020.

External links

• Aral Simsir at FC Midtjylland (in Danish)
• Aral Simsir at Danish Superliga (in Danish)
• Doğukan Aral Şimşir at the Turkish Football Federation