Arda Güler

Arda Güler (Turkish pronunciation: [aɾˈda ˈɟylæɾ] ; born 25 February 2005) is a Turkish professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or winger for La Liga club Real Madrid and the Turkey national team.

Club career

Early career

Güler started his youth career at Ankara-based club Gençlerbirliği, in 2014. He joined Fenerbahçe youth ranks in 2019.

Fenerbahçe

Güler signed a two-and-a-half-year-long professional contract with Fenerbahçe, on 13 January 2021. He was considered as a wonderkid and seen as a big prospect for the future.

2021–22 season

Güler made his senior debut as a substitute player against Finnish club HJK in the play-off round encounter of the 2021–22 UEFA Europa League. Held at Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium on 19 August 2021, it ended 1–0 for Fenerbahçe. In his first Süper Lig match three days later, he provided the assist that let Miha Zajc score the winning goal at the 89th minute of the 2–0 victory over Antalyaspor.

He started getting more playing time as the 2021–22 season progressed. In March 2022, Güler became Fenerbahçe's youngest goalscorer in Süper Lig history, having just turned 17 three weeks earlier. By May 2022, Güler had scored 3 goals and delivered 3 assists in just 255 minutes of playing time. After an impressing start to his career, it was reported that big European clubs like Arsenal, Liverpool, Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain showed their interest in signing him. On 17 March 2022, Fenerbahçe announced that they had signed a three-year contract with him.

2022–23 season

In the start of 2022–23 season, after the departure of Mesut Özil, Güler was given the number 10, which has a special meaning for Fenerbahçe fans, being the number of club legends Alex de Souza and Jay-Jay Okocha. He played his first match of the season against Kasımpaşa and scored two goals in 21 minutes of play. On 3 November 2022, he scored his first goal in European competitions, and also provided an assist, in a 2–0 away win over Dynamo Kyiv in the Europa League group stage. On 11 June 2023, Güler put in a man of the match performance in a 2–0 win at 2023 Turkish Cup final against İstanbul Başakşehir. On 6 July, Güler took to Instagram to announce his departure from Fenerbahçe, marking the end of his tenure with the Turkish club.

Real Madrid

On 6 July 2023, La Liga club Real Madrid announced the signing of Güler to a six-year contract lasting until June 2029. The deal was sealed by triggering his release clause with an initial payment of €20 million, which surpassed the €17.5 million clause from his former contract with Fenerbahçe. Güler requested Real Madrid to pay beyond his release clause to raise funds for his former club.

Following multiple injuries in late 2023, Güler debuted for Real Madrid in the Copa del Rey match against Arandina on 6 January 2024, contributing to the team's 3–1 win. Few days later, on 14 January, he won his first trophy with Real Madrid in the Supercopa de España final, where Real Madrid triumphed over Barcelona with a score of 4–1. Güler made his La Liga debut against Las Palmas on 27 January, coming on as a substitute in the 81st minute, replacing Rodrygo. On 10 March, Güler scored his first league goal for Real Madrid, dribbling past Celta goalkeeper Vicente Guaita in the fourth minute of stoppage time, five minutes after being substituted on, to seal a 4–0 league victory over Celta Vigo. On 26 April, Güler marked his first La Liga start with a goal, giving his team a 1–0 win against Real Sociedad at Reale Arena.

International career

Güler is a Turkish youth international, having played up to the Turkey U21s. He made his senior international debut for Turkey on 19 November 2022, in their 2–1 friendly win against Czech Republic. He scored his first goal against Wales in Euro 2024 qualifiers on 19 June 2023.

Style of play and popularity

Güler is a left-footed attacking midfielder who can also operate on the right wing to cut inside and use his stronger foot to create shooting chances and decisive passes to the final third. According to Whoscored, he is a creative and tricky player with immense set-piece abilities who is dubbed by local media as the "Turkish Messi". He idolizes Alex de Souza, the former captain and a Fenerbahçe legend. Güler is a modern day hardworking midfielder with a good defensive contribution and can also play as a central midfielder.

Güler is very popular in his country due to his Fenerbahçe career. He became a role model, especially for young children.

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 19 May 2024

International

As of match played 26 March 2024

Scores and results list Turkey's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Güler goal.

Honours

Fenerbahçe

• Turkish Cup: 2022–23

Real Madrid

• La Liga: 2023–24
• Supercopa de España: 2023–24

References

External links

• Arda Güler at UEFA
• Arda Güler at the Turkish Football Federation
• Arda Güler at BDFutbol
• Arda Güler at ESPN FC
• Arda Güler at EU-Football.info
• Arda Güler at L'Équipe (in French)
• Arda Güler at kicker (in German)
• Arda Güler at National-Football-Teams.com
• Arda Güler at Soccerbase.com
• Arda Güler at Soccerway.com