Gökhan Inler

Gökhan Inler

Inler with Switzerland in 2015
Personal information
Full name Gökhan Inler[1]
Date of birth (1984-06-27) 27 June 1984
Place of birth Olten, Switzerland
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)[2]
Playing position Central midfielder
Club information
Current team
 Leicester City
Number 33
Youth career
1992–1998 Olten
1998–2002 Solothurn
2002–2004 Basel
Senior career*
Years Team Apps† (Gls)†
2004–2005 Basel 0 (0)
2005–2006 Aarau 25 (3)
2006–2007 Zürich 52 (3)
2007–2011 Udinese 141 (6)
2011–2015 Napoli 118 (9)
2015– Leicester City 5 (0)
National team‡
2005 Switzerland U21 3 (0)
2006 Turkey U21 1 (0)
2006– Switzerland 89 (7)

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 15 December 2015.
† Appearances (goals)

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 30 December 2015

Gökhan Inler (Turkish: Gökhan İnler,[3] born 27 June 1984) is a Swiss professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder for English Premier League side Leicester City and the Switzerland National Team.[4]

Inler began his professional career with FC Basel, later joining FC Aarau and FC Zürich, winning the Swiss Super League in both of his seasons with the latter. After four seasons with Udinese in the Italian Serie A, he then joined Napoli in 2011, where he twice won the Coppa Italia.

Inler played under-21 football for both Switzerland and Turkey. He made his debut for the Swiss senior team in 2006 and has since earned 89 caps, scoring seven goals, making him the nation's fifth-most capped player of all time. He represented the squad at UEFA Euro 2008 and two FIFA World Cups, captaining the Swiss in Brazil in 2014.

Club career

Early career

Inler battling for a header against Luzern in 2007

Born in Olten in the Canton of Solothurn, Inler began his career at FC Basel, later FC Aarau. On 20 March 2005, he made his Swiss Super League debut in a 2–3 home defeat against Grasshoppers. In January 2006, he was signed by FC Zürich and was part of the 2005–06 and 2007–08 Swiss championship-winning teams.

Udinese

2007–08 season

Inler joined Udinese of the Italian Serie A in July 2007 after the Udine-based club met a buy-out clause in his Zürich contract, joining for an undisclosed fee and signing a five-year contract.[5] He scored his first goal for Udinese in a 2–1 win over Torino, netting in the 52nd minute to make the score 2–0 for Udinese.[6] On 30 March 2008, Inler scored his second Serie A goal, opening the scoring in an eventual 3–1 win over Fiorentina. Inler also set-up striker Antonio Di Natale for the winning goal later in the match.[7] In Inler's first season in Italy, he started all domestic games for Udinese, scoring two goals and providing two assists.[8] Inler and Udinese had a very successful season, finishing seventh in Serie A and thus earning a berth in the first round of next season's UEFA Cup.[9]

2008–09 season

On the opening day of the 2008–09 Serie A season, Inler scored the third goal of a 3–1 win over Palermo and provided an assist for one of Antonio Di Natale's two goals.[10] On 18 September, Inler then scored in the first leg of a UEFA Cup qualifying round game away against Borussia Dortmund, a game Udinese won 0–2.[11] Despite then losing the home leg 0–2 courtesy of two goals from Tamas Hajnal, Udinese progressed after winning 4–3 in penalties, with Inler converting his kick.[12] Inler featured in all four of Udinese's group stage games as they finished first in their group with nine points.[13][14][15][16] In the Round of 16, Inler started both legs against reigning champions Zenit Saint Petersburg, as Udinese won 2–1 on aggregate against the Russians.[17] In the quarterfinal round against Werder Bremen, Udinese lost the first leg 3–1 away from home, but in the second leg, Inler struck early on for the hosts, netting a dipping shot from over 25 yards out.[18] Diego equalized for the Germans before Fabio Quagliarella netted twice before the break to bring the aggregate score to 4–4. Two second-half goals for Bremen, however, meant that the hosts were knocked out at the quarterfinal stage.[19]

Inler's goal against Palermo proved to be his only league goal of the season, but he provided three more assists, including one helper in a stunning 6–2 victory over Cagliari on the final matchday of the season.[20] The win assured that Udinese once again finished seventh in Serie A, this time five points behind Roma for the last European spot.[21]

2009–10 season

Udinese and Inler found the next season much more difficult. The playmaker did not have a successful season following his breakout campaign in the UEFA Cup from the previous year. He failed to score in 33 Serie A appearances and only provided one assist to Antonio Di Natale in a 2–1 loss to eventual champions Internazionale.[22] Udinese only secured their Serie A safety on the penultimate day of the season after a 2–2 draw at Cagliari, which also saw the hosts confirm their Serie A place for the next season.[23] Four days later, Inler scored for Switzerland in a 1–1 draw against Italy in an international friendly in preparation for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, with former teammate Fabio Quagliarella scoring for the reigning world champions.[24]

2010–11 season

Inler and Udinese continued their poor form from the previous year to begin the 2010–11 Serie A campaign, losing four of their first five games,[8] though fortunes quickly started to turn around for each. Udinese went on a streak of six-straight games without a loss, winning four in a row; in one game, Inler set up Antonio Floro Flores to level for the hosts against Cagliari, a game ending in a 1–1 draw on 7 November 2010.[25] Following the winter break, Inler grabbed an assist in Udinese's 2–0 win over Chievo on 6 January 2011.[26] In an enthralling game at the San Siro the next Sunday, Inler provided Antonio Di Natale with one of his goals in a 4–4 draw against eventual champions Milan.[27] Inler then scored his first goal of the season in a 3–0 win over Cesena. The result meant that Udinese had not lost in 2011, a span of eight games, and moved up to sixth in the league table.[28] Udinese drew their next game against Brescia before winning their next four, including a 7–0 thrashing of Palermo away from home.[29] In the 13th and final game of their unbeaten streak, Inler scored against Catania in a 2–0 win.[30] After finally losing, a 2–0 defeat to Lecce, Inler continued his fine run of form, scoring in a 2–1 win over title-chasers Napoli.[31] Udinese drew with Milan on 22 May, confirming the former's fourth-place finish and Italy's final UEFA Champions League berth with one game remaining in the season.[32]

Napoli

Inler in action for Napoli in August 2013.

Because of his good form in Udinese, helping them finish fourth in the 2010–11 Serie A table and securing a Champions League playoff spot, transfer speculation was rife that Inler would be on the move. In May 2011, Udinese agreed a deal with Napoli in a deal for the player worth €13 million.[33] In July, Inler agreed personal terms with Napoli and was unveiled on 11 July, being presented in an unconventional manner, wearing a lion mask to hide his identity and sporting the jersey number 88.[34] He made his Napoli debut in their 3–1 away win at Cesena on 10 September.[35] Inler provided an assist for Federico Fernández in a 3–2 defeat to Bayern Munich in the group stages of the Champions League on 2 November.[36] In the same game, he was involved in a challenge with Bastian Schweinsteiger that resulted in the German international requiring surgery for a broken collarbone.[37] On 7 December, Inler scored his first goal for both his new club and in the Champions League; he opened the scoring with a left-footed drive in a 0–2 away win over Villarreal CF in the final game of the group stage phase, a win that took Napoli through to the knockout stages of the competition.[38]

In Napoli's Round of 16 tie against Chelsea, Inler scored a long-range drive in the second leg at Stamford Bridge to send the game into extra-time.[39] A late goal from Branislav Ivanović, however, ensured Chelsea progressed to the quarterfinals 5–4 on aggregate.[40] On 25 April 2012, Napoli headed to the Stadio Via del Mare to face Lecce, where Inler provided both assists for goals by Marek Hamšík and Edinson Cavani, helping Napoli climb to fourth in Serie A standings.[41] Later on in the season, Inler played in the Coppa Italia Final against Scudetto winners Juventus, winning his first piece of silverware with the Partenopei after they defeated league-champions Juve 2–0.[42]

On 3 May 2014, Inler was sent off in Napoli's victory over Fiorentina in the 2014 Coppa Italia Final.[43]

Leicester City

On 19 August 2015, Inler joined Premier League side Leicester City in England on a three-year deal for an undisclosed fee—reported to be £3 million—where he received the number 33 jersey.[44][45] He made his debut three days later, replacing Danny Drinkwater for the final ten minutes of a 1–1 draw with Tottenham Hotspur at King Power Stadium.[46] Due to the good performances of Drinkwater and N'Golo Kanté, Inler totalled only seven Leicester appearances by the end of the calendar year.[47]

International career

Inler played for the Swiss and Turkish national under-21 teams before making his debut for the Swiss senior team.[48] On 2 September 2006, he made his senior international debut in a friendly against Venezuela in Basel.[49] Inler played all of Switzerland's matches at UEFA Euro 2008 in which they were eliminated at the group stage on home soil.[49]

In the absence of regular captain Alexander Frei, on 16 June 2010, Inler captained Switzerland in a 1–0 win against Spain in the group stage of the 2010 FIFA World Cup.[50] Frei returned for the second group game, but Inler was again the captain in the third, a goalless draw with Honduras.[49]

After Frei's retirement in 2011, Inler became the Swiss captain,[51] and played all four matches as they reached the last 16 of the 2014 FIFA World Cup.[49]

Style of play

A hard-working, tenacious, and tactically versatile midfielder, Inler is capable of aiding his team both defensively and offensively; an intelligent player, he is known both for his stamina and his movements off the ball, although his most prominent trait is his powerful and accurate striking ability from distance with both feet, and also from set pieces. Inler is usually deployed as a defensive midfielder, where is also capable of functioning creatively as a deep-lying playmaker in front of the defensive line, due to his vision, passing range, and ability to control the tempo of his team's play; his long passing accuracy allows him to effectively switch the play and create chances for team-mates after winning back possession. Due to his height and physical attributes, he is also effective in the air.[52][53]

Personal life

Inler, born and brought up in Switzerland, has parents of Turkish origin.[54]

Career statistics

Statistics accurate as of match played 13 September 2015[55]

Club

Club Season League Cup Europe Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Aarau
2004–05 1430000143
2005–06 1100000110
Total 2530000253
Zürich
2005–06 1720000172
2006–07 3510020371
Total 5230020543
Udinese
2007–08 37230--402
2008–09 36110122493
2009–10 33041--371
2010–11 35310--363
Total 1416911221629
Napoli
2011–12 3605082492
2012–13 3162060396
2013–14 3225082454
2014–15 19130110331
Total 118915033416613
Leicester City 2015–16 5050--100
Career total 3412127147641728

International

As of match played 13 November 2015[49]
Switzerland national team
YearAppsGoals
200630
2007101
2008130
200970
2010123
201190
201292
201370
2014110
201571
Total887

International goals

As of match played 9 October 2015[49]

Honours

Club

Zürich[55]
Napoli[55]
Leicester City

References

  1. ↑ "2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil: List of Players" (PDF). FIFA. 11 June 2014. p. 30. Retrieved 25 June 2014.
  2. ↑ http://www.sscnapoli.it/Squadra/Gokhan-Inler
  3. ↑ "HABER: Gökhan İnler, Milli Takım Heyetine Kırgın haberi". Spor.haberler.com. 31 October 2007. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  4. ↑ "Gokhan Inler unmasked as Napoli signing in bizarre lion stunt". Goal.com. 2011-07-11. Retrieved 2014-05-16.
  5. ↑ "Udinese stump up for Zürich's Inler –". Uefa.com. Retrieved 2014-05-16.
  6. ↑ Serie A15:30 EDT, 31 October 2007Stadio Friuli (31 October 2007). "Report: Udinese v Torino – Italian Serie A – ESPN Soccernet". ESPN. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  7. ↑ Serie A9:00 EDT, 30 March 2008Stadio Friuli (30 March 2008). "Gamecast: Udinese v Fiorentina – Italian Serie A – ESPN Soccernet". ESPN. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  8. 1 2 "Gökhan Inler Bio, Stats, News – Football / Soccer – - ESPN Soccernet". ESPN. 27 June 1984. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  9. ↑ "2007/08 Italian Serie A Table / Standings – ESPN Soccernet". ESPN. 18 May 2008. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  10. ↑ "Match: Udinese v Palermo – Italian Serie A – ESPN Soccernet". ESPN. 30 August 2008. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  11. ↑ "Match: Borussia Dortmund v Udinese – UEFA Cup – ESPN Soccernet". ESPN. 18 September 2008. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  12. ↑ "Match: Udinese v Borussia Dortmund – UEFA Cup – ESPN Soccernet". ESPN. 2 October 2008. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  13. ↑ "Report: Spartak Moscow v Udinese – UEFA Cup – ESPN Soccernet". ESPN. 6 November 2008. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  14. ↑ "Report: Udinese v Tottenham Hotspur – UEFA Cup – ESPN Soccernet". ESPN. 23 October 2008. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  15. ↑ "Report: Udinese v Dinamo Zagreb – UEFA Cup – ESPN Soccernet". ESPN. 3 December 2008. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  16. ↑ "Report: NEC Nijmegen v Udinese – UEFA Cup – ESPN Soccernet". ESPN. 18 December 2008. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  17. ↑ "Udinese bounce defending champions Zenit out of UEFA Cup". Tsn.ca. 19 March 2009. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  18. ↑ papaamericanoop0. "Udinese 1–0 Werder Inler". YouTube. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  19. ↑ "Report: Udinese v Werder Bremen – UEFA Cup – ESPN Soccernet". ESPN. 16 April 2009. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  20. ↑ "Report: Udinese v Cagliari – Italian Serie A – ESPN Soccernet". ESPN. 31 May 2009. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  21. ↑ "2008/09 Italian Serie A Table / Standings – ESPN Soccernet". ESPN. 3 June 2009. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  22. ↑ "Report: Internazionale v Udinese – Italian Serie A – ESPN Soccernet". ESPN. 3 October 2009. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  23. ↑ "Report: Cagliari v Udinese – Italian Serie A – ESPN Soccernet". ESPN. 2 May 2010. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  24. ↑ "Report: Switzerland v Italy – International Friendly – ESPN Soccernet". ESPN. 5 June 2010. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  25. ↑ "Report: Udinese v Cagliari – Italian Serie A – ESPN Soccernet". ESPN. 7 November 2010. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  26. ↑ "Report: Udinese v Chievo Verona – Italian Serie A – ESPN Soccernet". ESPN. 6 January 2011. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  27. ↑ Meadows, Mark. "Milan draw 4–4 with Udinese, Inter triumph | Football | Reuters". Football.uk.reuters.com. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  28. ↑ "Cesena vs Udinese Report". Goal.com. 13 February 2011. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  29. ↑ Gardner, Alan (28 February 2011). "Palermo's destruction by Udinese leaves Delio Rossi on the brink | Football". The Guardian (UK). Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  30. ↑ Author Scot Munroe  (65 Posts) (20 March 2011). "Udinese 2–0 Catania: Unbeaten Streak Continues". Forza Italian Football. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  31. ↑ "Napoli 1–2 Udinese: Guidolin without Di Natale and Sanchez, but masterminds great victory". Zonal Marking. 19 April 2011. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  32. ↑ "Udine, Champions League party, 0–0 with AC Milan is enough – Football – La Gazzetta dello Sport". English.gazzetta.it. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  33. ↑ Napoli agree summer switch for Gokhan Inler from Udinese – report – Goal.com
  34. ↑ "Mane man Gokhan Inler the pride of Napoli – ESPN Soccernet". ESPN. 11 July 2011. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  35. ↑ "Napoli, 3–1 a Cesena. Lavezzi-Hamsik show! – Napoli / Serie A / Calcio". Tuttosport. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  36. ↑ "Report: Bayern Munich v Napoli – UEFA Champions League – ESPN Soccernet". ESPN. 2 November 2011. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  37. ↑ Agencies (2 November 2011). "Bayern Munich 3–2 Napoli | Champions League Group A match report | Football | guardian.co.uk". The Guardian (UK). Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  38. ↑ "Villarreal 0-2 Napoli". The Guardian (London). 7 December 2011.
  39. ↑ Custis, Shaun. "Chelsea 4 Napoli 1". The Sun (London).
  40. ↑ Taylor, Daniel (14 March 2012). "Chelsea 4-1 Napoli (Chelsea win 5-4 on agg)". The Guardian (London).
  41. ↑ Serie A13:00 +00:00, April 25, 2012Via del Mare, Italy (2012-04-25). "Gamecast: Lecce v Napoli - Italian Serie A - ESPN FC". Soccernet.espn.go.com. Retrieved 2014-05-16.
  42. ↑ "Match Report: Juventus 0-2 Napoli". Goal.com. 2012-05-20. Retrieved 2014-05-16.
  43. ↑ "Coppa Italia final: Rafael Benitez's Napoli beat Fiorentina 3-1". BBC Sport. 3 May 2014. Retrieved 4 May 2014.
  44. ↑ "Gokhan Inler: Leicester sign Switzerland midfielder from Napoli". BBC Sport. 19 August 2015. Retrieved 19 August 2015.
  45. ↑ "Gokhan Inler becomes a Leicester City player after signing from Napoli for £3m". Daily Mail. 19 August 2015. Retrieved 19 August 2015.
  46. ↑ Bevan, Chris (22 August 2015). "Leicester 1-1 Tottenham". BBC Sport. Retrieved 26 August 2015.
  47. ↑ Hafez, Shamoon (29 December 2015). "January transfer window: Vardy, Cole, Aubameyang, Robben". BBC Sport. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
  48. ↑ "GÖKHAN İNLER - Player Details TFF". TFF.org.tr. Retrieved 20 December 2013.
  49. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Gokhan Inler". European Football. Retrieved 20 August 2014.
  50. ↑ Sheringham, Sam. "Spain 0–1 Switzerland". BBC News. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  51. ↑ "Gökhan Inler neuer Nati-Captain [Gökhan Inler new National Captain]" (in German). Swiss Football Association. 23 April 2011. Retrieved 20 August 2014.
  52. ↑ Gianluca Volpe Prignano (15 April 2011). "Napoli, occhio a: Gokhan Inler. Domenica avversari, l'anno prossimo chissà...." [Napoli, watch out for: Gokhan Inler. Opponents on Sunday, but next year who knows...] (in Italian). Calcio Napoli 24. Retrieved 5 November 2015.
  53. ↑ "IL NAPOLI SI FA LO “SWATCH”: FINALMENTE INLER!" [Napoli gets a "Swatch": Finally Inler!] (in Italian). Pianeta Napoli. 11 July 2011. Retrieved 5 November 2015.
  54. ↑ White, Duncan (4 September 2010). "Swiss-Turkish Players". The Daily Telegraph (London).
  55. 1 2 3 Inler/ Gökhan Inler profile at Soccerway

External links

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Sporting positions
Preceded by
Alexander Frei		 Switzerland captain
2011– 		Succeeded by
incumbent
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