Semih Kaya

Semih Kaya
Kaya playing for Galatasaray in 2012
Personal information
Date of birth (1991-02-24) 24 February 1991 (age 33)
Place of birth Bergama, Turkey
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position(s) Centre back
Youth career
2001–2004 Petkimspor
2004 Helvacı Bld. Gençlik ve Spor
2004–2006 Altay
2006–2009 Galatasaray
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2009–2017 Galatasaray 147 (5)
2010 → Gaziantepspor (loan) 1 (0)
2010–2011 → Kartalspor (loan) 18 (0)
2017–2020 Sparta Prague 28 (2)
2019 → Galatasaray (loan) 5 (0)
2020–2022 Yeni Malatyaspor 54 (1)
2022 Galatasaray 2 (0)
Total 255 (8)
International career
2006 Turkey U15 2 (0)
2006–2007 Turkey U16 9 (0)
2006–2008 Turkey U17 25 (1)
2007–2009 Turkey U18 10 (0)
2009 Turkey U19 2 (0)
2009–2011 Turkey U21 4 (0)
2012–2015 Turkey 23 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Semih Kaya (Turkish pronunciation: [semih kaja], born 24 February 1991) is a Turkish former professional footballer who played as a centre back, most recently for Galatasaray. On 12 August 2022, he announced on his social media accounts that he was leaving football.[1]

Club career

Early career

Kaya joined Galatasaray's youth academy from Altay's youth team when he was 15.

On 25 February 2007, when he was playing against older young players in the season of Süper Gençler Ligi (Super Youth League) against Beşiktaş, in the fifth minute of the game, a kick from Batuhan Karadeniz collided with his head, forcing him to leave the game; he later went to a hospital to undergo head surgery (coagulation).

Kaya's first Süper Lig appearance was against İstanbul B.B. on 19 February 2009.[2] After not receiving significant playing time, he joined fellow Süper Lig club Gaziantepspor on loan in January 2010 for the remainder of the season.[3] In the summer of 2010, he signed for Turkish First League side Kartalspor on loan.[4] On 18 October 2010, he scored two goals in the A2 Lig game against Altay.[5]

Return to Galatasaray

At the beginning of the 2011–12 season, Kaya was not typically selected for Galatasaray's starting line-up, but following injuries to other players, notably Gökhan Zan, and a fall in form of Servet Çetin, Galatasaray coach Fatih Terim granted him a chance to prove himself. Following a series of solid performances, he soon became first-choice centreback alongside the Czech Tomáš Ujfaluši.

Kaya scored his first goal for the club against Samsunspor on 7 January 2012 in the 51st minute of a 2–0 comeback, with the game ending 4–2 for Galatasaray.[6] In the 2011–12 season, he played 30 games and was a key member of the championship-winning squad. He continued to be first choice centre-back for the club and country, delivering calm and confident performances despite against top teams such as Manchester United and, internationally, against the Netherlands. He finished his second year with 36 appearances in all competitions. On 18 November 2013, his contract was extended for three years until 2016.[7]

In June 2014 Inter Milan was reportedly interested in Kaya.[8]

Sparta Prague

On 14 July 2017, Kaya left Galatasaray and joined Czech club Sparta Prague, signing a three-year contract.[9][10] He was loaned to Galatasaray on 18 January 2019, for the remainder of the 2018–19 season, with the Turkish club covering his wages.[11] On 13 July 2020, Sparta Prague announced the departure of Kaya, after an injury-plagued spell in the Czech Republic.[12]

Yeni Malatyaspor

On 29 September 2020, Kaya joined Yeni Malatyaspor as a free agent.[13] He left the club on 31 January 2022 on a mutual contract termination.[14]

Galatasaray – third spell

On 3 February 2022, Kaya joined Galatasaray for the third time in his career.[15] On 12 August 2022, he announced his retirement from professional football.[16]

International career

Kaya has played for all levels of the Turkey national team, including the under-21 level despite being at a younger age at the time. He made his debut for senior Turkish side on 29 February 2012, playing the entire game against Slovakia in a 2–1 loss.[17] He is part of the Turkey national team for Euro 2016.[18]

Personal life

Kaya's grandfather was Torbesh and he emigrated from Macedonia to the Turkish city of İzmir. He is the youngest of three brothers.[19]

Career statistics

Club

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition[20][21]
Club Season League National cup League cup Europe Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Galatasaray 2008–09 Süper Lig 3 0 1 0 — 0 0 4 0
2011–12 30 1 1 0 — — 31 1
2012–13 25 0 0 0 1 0 10 0 36 0
2013–14 29 0 5 0 1 0 6 0 41 0
2014–15 19 0 1 0 6 0 6 0 32 0
2015–16 21 2 0 0 6 0 4 0 31 2
2016–17 20 2 7 0 0 0 0 0 27 2
Total 147 5 15 0 14 0 26 0 202 5
Gaziantepspor (loan) 2009–10 Süper Lig 1 0 0 0 — — 1 0
Kartalspor (loan) 2010–11 TFF First League 18 0 1 0 — — 19 0
Sparta Prague 2017–18 Czech First League 8 0 0 0 — 1 0 9 0
2018–19 10 0 0 0 — 2 0 12 0
2019–20 10 2 2 0 — 0 0 12 2
Total 28 2 2 0 0 0 3 0 33 2
Galatasaray (loan) 2018–19 Süper Lig 5 0 2 0 — — 7 0
Yeni Malatyaspor 2020–21 Süper Lig 32 1 2 0 — — 34 1
2021–22 22 0 0 0 — — 22 0
Total 54 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 56 1
Galatasaray 2021–22 Süper Lig 2 0 0 0 — — 2 0
Career total 255 8 23 0 14 0 29 0 321 8

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year[20]
National team Year Apps Goals
Turkey 2012 8 0
2013 8 0
2014 5 0
2015 2 0
Total 23 0

Honours

Galatasaray

Sparta Prag

References

  1. ^ @semihkaya_26 (12 August 2022). "Veda zamanı..." (Tweet). Archived from the original on 12 August 2022. Retrieved 18 June 2023 – via Twitter.
  2. ^ "Semih makes his debut". TFF.org. 19 April 2009. Retrieved 7 September 2010.
  3. ^ "Galatasaray'da büyük değişim". ntv.com.tr (in Turkish). 2 February 2010. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  4. ^ "TRANSFER DOSYASI". NTVSpor.net (in Turkish). 26 August 2010. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  5. ^ "Semih ve Erhan Kartal'a". Pasfotomac.com.tr. 22 July 2010. Retrieved 7 September 2010.
  6. ^ "Samsunspor 2 – 4 Galatasaray". Galatasaray.org. 9 April 2012. Retrieved 7 January 2012.
  7. ^ "Galatasaray Semih'in sözleşmesini uzattı". Skorer. Retrieved 18 October 2013.
  8. ^ "Semih Kaya'ya kanca" [Hook to Semih Kaya]. Fotomaç (in Turkish). 4 June 2014. Retrieved 6 September 2024.
  9. ^ "Semih Kaya resmen Sparta Prag'da". NTVSpor.net (in Turkish). 14 July 2017. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  10. ^ AC Sparta Prague (14 July 2017). "Defender Semih Kaya completed his move to Sparta from Galatasaray!". Twitter. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  11. ^ "Galatasaray re-sign defender Semih Kaya". Turkish Football News. 18 January 2019. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  12. ^ Calli, Muhammed Enes (13 July 2020). "Turkish defender Semih Kaya leaves Sparta Prague". aa.com.tr. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  13. ^ "Yeni Malatyaspor, Semih Kaya'yı kadrosuna kattı | Goal.com Türkçe". goal.com (in Turkish). 29 September 2020. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  14. ^ "Yeni Malatyaspor, Semih Kaya ile yollarını ayırdı". NTVSpor.net (in Turkish). 31 January 2022. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  15. ^ "Yuvana hoş geldin Semih Kaya!" (in Turkish). Galatasaray S.K. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
  16. ^ "Bir devrin sonu: Semih Kaya emekli oldu" [The end of an era: Semih Kaya retires]. Gaste 24 (in Turkish). 12 August 2022. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  17. ^ "Türkiye 1-2 Slovakya". TFF.org. 9 April 2012. Retrieved 29 February 2012.
  18. ^ "UEFA EURO 2016". UEFA. Retrieved 12 June 2016.
  19. ^ "Kaya gibi stoper: Semih Kaya". TFF.org. 2 February 2009. Retrieved 19 January 2016.
  20. ^ a b "Semih Kaya". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 27 June 2012.
  21. ^ "Futbolcu Bilgileri". Turkish Football Federation. 27 June 2012. Retrieved 27 June 2012.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Semih Kaya.