Hamit Altıntop

Hamit Altıntop

Altintop playing for Galatasaray in 2012
Personal information
Full name Hamit Altıntop
Date of birth (1982-12-08) 8 December 1982
Place of birth Gelsenkirchen, West Germany
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Playing position Midfielder
Club information
Current team
 Galatasaray
Number 4
Youth career
1991–1992 Schwarz-Weiß Gelsenkirchen-Süd
1992–1997 TuS Rotthausen
1997–2000 Wattenscheid 09
Senior career*
Years Team Apps† (Gls)†
2000–2003 Wattenscheid 09 75 (12)
2003–2007 Schalke 04 113 (8)
2007–2011 Bayern Munich 63 (7)
2011–2012 Real Madrid 5 (1)
2012–2016 Galatasaray 57 (1)
National team‡
2000 Turkey U18 5 (3)
2001 Turkey U20 6 (1)
2003 Turkey U21 9 (2)
2004–2014 Turkey 82 (7)

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 16 June 2015.
† Appearances (goals)

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 18 November 2014

Hamit Altıntop (Turkish pronunciation: [häˈmit äɫˈtɯnto̞p], born 8 December 1982) is a Turkish professional footballer who plays for Galatasaray in the Süper Lig.[1] He is a versatile midfielder who can play either in a defending or attacking role and on both flanks. He is well known for his flair of long-shot ability. He is the identical twin brother of footballer Halil Altıntop, who was born 10 minutes after Hamit.

Altıntop was part of the Turkey squad that reached the semi-finals of Euro 2008. After the tournament he was voted as part of the 23-man Team of the tournament awards. He won the 2010 FIFA Puskás Award for scoring the best goal of the season in an UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying match against Kazakhstan in a 3–0 win for his country.[2]

Club career

Schalke

Altıntop started his professional career in local German club Wattenscheid in 2000 along with his brother. As successful performances grabbed the attention of bigger clubs, he was transferred to Schalke 04 in 2003, where he played in a primarily defensive midfield role. In the 2006–07 summer transfer window, Schalke signed his brother Halil from Kaiserslautern. Schalke came second in the Bundesliga, only pipped by VfB Stuttgart by two points.

Altıntop with Schalke in 2005

Bayern Munich

Altıntop joined Bayern Munich for the 2007–08 season on a free transfer from Schalke 04. He scored his first goal in his first game for Bayern when they faced the Brazilian champions São Paulo. Munich went on winning the game 2–1 after his spectacular free-kick. Remaining as one of Munich's starters, he scored another left-foot goal out of 30 meters distance against Werder Bremen in the DFB-Ligapokal. Munich completed the match with a 4–1 victory.

Altıntop also scored a controversial penalty against Aberdeen in the first leg of their tie in the UEFA Cup competition on 14 February 2008 at Pittodrie. The initial penalty kick was saved by Aberdeen goalkeeper Jamie Langfield; however, Altıntop scored with the rebound. The match finished 2–2.[3]

In 2009–10 season, Bayern Munich competed in Champions League and they eventually went to 2010 UEFA Champions League Final, which was played at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, home of Real Madrid on Saturday, 22 May 2010. He started the match in the first 11, but he was substituted for Miroslav Klose, on 63rd minute.

On 2 June 2010, Altıntop signed a new one-year contract with Bayern Munich.[4] He was eventually released by Bayern during the end of the 2010–11 season, after failing to negotiate an extension to his contract. Thus, he became a free agent.

Real Madrid

On 19 May 2011, it was announced Altıntop would move on a free transfer to Real Madrid. He signed a four-year contract with the Spanish club.[5] He made his debut for the club on 27 September at the Santiago Bernabéu in a Champions League match against AFC Ajax, coming on in the 84th minute as a replacement for Mesut Özil. He made his La Liga debut for the club on 15 October at the Santiago Bernabéu in a match against Real Betis, coming on in the 78th minute as a replacement for Cristiano Ronaldo. He scored his first goal for the club on 18 December at the Estadio Ramón Sánchez in a match against Sevilla FC on the 89th minute from an assist from Xabi Alonso, coming on in the 86th minute as a replacement for Karim Benzema. He made his first starting debut for the club on 28 January 2012 at the Santiago Bernabéu in a victory over Zaragoza, playing a full match. He made his first Champions League starting debut for the club on 4 April 2012 at the Santiago Bernabéu in a 2011–12 Champions League quarter-finals match against APOEL F.C., playing a full match.

Galatasaray

On 13 July 2012, he signed a four-year contract with the Galatasaray SK for €3.5 million from Real Madrid.[6][7] Altıntop will earn €2.4 million per-season in 2012–13 and 2013–14 in addition to a €20,000 per-match bonus.[8] He made his Galatasaray debut on 12 August 2012 in the 2012 Turkish Super Cup final against the Turkish Cup Champions Fenerbahçe. Galatasaray won 3–2, winning the title for the 12th time. He made his Süper Lig debut the following week against Kasımpaşa. Altıntop's first goal for Galatasaray was a 30-meter free kick in the 37th minute of a Champions League defeat of former club Schalke 04 on 12 March 2013.[9]

International career

Altıntop playing for Turkey in 2010

Altıntop played in all five of Turkey's matches at UEFA Euro 2008. He assisted all three goals in the comeback against the Czech Republic and in the quarter finals against Croatia he scored the third penalty to make it 3–1 in the shoot out. After goalkeeper Rüştü Reçber saved the next Croatian penalty, Turkey advanced to the semi-finals against Germany. Turkish coach Fatih Terim used him as a right defender in the first two games of the tournament, a move that was heavily criticized by the media, since Altıntop was a midfielder for his then-club Bayern Munich. After the match against Switzerland, Terim switched him to midfield for the remainder of the tournament, which boosted both Turkey's and his own performance. His bold playing style and decisive passes made him a dominant player in the Turkish midfield. He was awarded with the Carlsberg Man of the Match award following the quarter final match against Croatia. At the conclusion of the tournament, Altıntop was widely acknowledged to be one of the tournament's stars, and was included in UEFA's official 23-man "Team of the Tournament".[10]

In January 2011, Altıntop won the FIFA Puskás Award for Goal of the Year of 2010 for his volley against Kazakhstan in September 2010 in a Euro 2012 qualifier.[11]

He was captain of the national team for the first time on 30 March 2011 in a 2–0 victory against Austria.

Career statistics

As of 30 April 2015.[12][13]

Club

Club performance League Cup League Cup Continental Total
Season Club League Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Germany League DFB-Pokal DFB-Ligapokal Europe Total
2000–01Wattenscheid 09Regionalliga Nord111———111
2001–02314———314
2002–03337———337
Total 75120000007512
2003–04Schalke 04Bundesliga30500—31335
2004–0530061—80441
2005–06221202091352
2006–07312202020372
Total 11381014022214910
2007–08Bayern MunichBundesliga233513193408
2008–0911230—40182
2009–1015051—60261
2010–1114230—7025[lower-alpha 1]2
Total 637162312638613
Spain League Copa del Rey Supercopa de España Europe Total
2011–12Real MadridLa Liga51300040121
Total 51300040121
Turkey League Türkiye Kupası TFF Süper Kupa Europe Total
2012–13GalatasaraySüper Lig290101091401
2013–145020100080
2014–15231410050322
2015–160000000000
Total 5717120141803
Total Germany 253272627148533535
Spain 5130—40121
Turkey 5717120141803
Career total 315293639166642739
  1. ↑ Includes appearance in the DFL-Supercup

International

Turkey national team
YearAppsGoals
200460
2005100
2006110
2007112
200890
200961
201093
201160
201291
201330
201420
Total827

International goals

Scores and results table. Turkey's goal tally first:

International goals
# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 28 March 2007 Commerzbank-Arena, Frankfurt, Germany  Norway 1–2 2–2 UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying
2. 2–2
3. 12 August 2009 Lobanovsky Dynamo Stadium, Kiev, Ukraine  Ukraine 3–0 3–0 Friendly
4. 3 March 2010 BJK İnönü Stadium, İstanbul, Turkey  Honduras 2–0 2–0 Friendly
5. 3 September 2010 Astana Arena, Astana, Kazakhstan  Kazakhstan 2–0 3–0 UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying
6. 7 September 2010 Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium, İstanbul, Turkey  Belgium 1–1 3–2 UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying
7. 24 May 2012 Red Bull Arena, Salzburg, Austria  Georgia 1–0 3–1 Friendly

Honours

Club

Schalke 04[14]
Bayern Munich[14]
Real Madrid[14]
Galatasaray[14]

Individual

Personal life

Altıntop is a practicing Muslim. He said in an interview with a local Turkish television station that he has always been fasting (during the Islamic month of Ramadan) since he reached puberty although it was more difficult when fasting days coincided with match days and that Muslim players would feel more powerful during this holy month.[15] In 2014, Altıntop married Feyza Veli in a wedding ceremony in Istanbul's renowned Çırağan Palace.[16]

Trivia

Hamit's surname "Altıntop" means "gold ball" when it is literally translated. 'Altın' means 'gold' and 'top' means 'ball' in Turkish language.

References

  1. ↑ "Hamit Altıntop Galatasaray'da" (in Turkish). Galatasaray SK. 13 July 2012. Retrieved 13 July 2012.
  2. ↑ "Altintop claims the FIFA Puskás Award 2010". FIFA.com. Retrieved 19 February 2011.
  3. ↑ "Aberdeen 2–2 Bayern Munich". BBC Sport. 14 February 2008. Retrieved 12 May 2009.
  4. ↑ "Altintop signs new Bayern Munich deal". Ontheminute.com. 2 June 2010. Retrieved 2 June 2010.
  5. ↑ "Madrid swoop for free agent Hamit Altıntop". UEFA.com. 19 May 2011. Retrieved 19 May 2011.
  6. ↑ "Hamit Altıntop Galatasaray'da" (in Turkish). Galatasaray. 13 July 2012. Retrieved 13 July 2012.
  7. ↑ "Altıntop leaves Madrid to join Galatasaray". UEFA. Retrieved 13 July 2012.
  8. ↑ "Galatasaray disclose financial details of Altintop transfer from Real Madrid". turkish-football.com. 13 July 2012. Retrieved 19 July 2012.
  9. ↑ Homewood, Brian (12 March 2013). "Galatasaray oust Schalke in pulsating five-goal clash". Chicago Tribune (Chicago, Illinois). Reuters. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
  10. 1 2 "Spain dominate Team of the Tournament". euro2008.uefa.com. 30 June 2008. Retrieved 30 June 2008.
  11. ↑ "Argentina's Lionel Messi wins Fifa Ballon d'Or award". BBC Sport. 10 January 2011. Retrieved 10 January 2011.
  12. ↑ "Altıntop, Hamit". National Football Teams. Retrieved 27 June 2012.
  13. ↑ "Hamit Altıntop". Mackolik.com. 27 June 2012. Retrieved 27 June 2012.
  14. 1 2 3 4 "Hamit Altıntop". Soccerway. Retrieved 12 August 2014.
  15. ↑ "Real's Muslim player fasting in Ramadan". Press TV. 8 August 2011. Retrieved 31 December 2012.
  16. ↑ "Galatasaraylı futbolcu Hamit Altıntop evlendi". CNNTürk. Retrieved 12 August 2014.

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