Half a century with Galatasaray: A summary of Fatih Terim's career

Fifty years have passed since Fatih Terim, the figure nicknamed the "Emperor" of Turkish football, first signed as a player for Galatasaray, the club where he would become a symbol and achieve many unforgettable successes.

Born in Adana on September 4, 1953, Fatih Terim began his football career at Ceyhanspor. Later transferring to Adana Demirspor, Terim wore the blue-and-navy jersey between 1969 and 1974.

Playing as a libero for his team, Fatih Terim spent 5 seasons at Adana Demirspor. During his time there, he experienced a championship in what was then the 2nd League, which brought him onto the transfer radar of Istanbul clubs.

The 20-year-old young Fatih Terim, with whom another Galatasaray legend, Metin Oktay, traveled to Adana to sign a contract, became tied to the yellow-and-red colors.

Signing with Galatasaray on July 8, 1974, Fatih Terim achieved countless successes as a player and coach over the following 50 years.

PLAYED FOR GALATASARAY FOR 11 YEARS

Fatih Terim played football at Galatasaray for 11 years.

Arriving at Galatasaray in 1974, Terim wore the yellow-and-red jersey for 11 seasons until the end of 1984-1985. Appearing in a total of 402 official matches, Fatih Terim also served as team captain. A permanent fixture of the National Team, Terim donned the crescent-and-star jersey in 51 matches.

Although Fatih Terim did not win a league title in a Galatasaray jersey, he lifted 3 Turkish Cups, 2 Presidential Cups, and 1 Prime Ministry Cup.

A MAGNIFICENT TESTIMONIAL MATCH

A magnificent testimonial match was organized for Fatih Terim, who retired from football in 1985.

Ending his active playing career on August 4, 1985, Fatih Terim arrived by helicopter at the testimonial match played against Trabzonspor in Kadıköy. The match, watched by approximately 30 thousand people, ended in a 0-0 draw.

A concert given by Fenerbahçe fan İbrahim Tatlıses while wearing a Galatasaray jersey, and a celebrity match between Galatasaray and Fenerbahçe, added color to the testimonial day.

Leaving the pitch on the shoulders of his teammates, Terim departed the stadium by helicopter, just as he had arrived.

COACHING ERA

Having ended his professional football life, Fatih Terim began his coaching career.

Starting his coaching career in 1987 after retiring from football, Terim had his first experience at MKE Ankaragücü. Terim, who led the yellow-and-navy team to 13th place in the 1987-1988 season, left his post after their second season, which they finished in 6th place.

After briefly coaching Göztepe in the 2nd League, Terim was appointed as assistant to head coach Sepp Piontek for the National Team and as head coach of the U21 National Team in February 1990.

Reaching the final and winning a silver medal at the head of the Under-21 National Football Team at the 1991 Mediterranean Games, Fatih Terim led the Turkish Olympic National Team to the championship at the 1993 Mediterranean Games.

Subsequently, Terim began working at the U21 National Team level with many players with whom he would later achieve great success in Turkish football, and his accomplishments there began to signal the victories he would achieve in the future.

NATIONAL TEAM ERA

Fatih Terim took the seat of A National Team Head Coach, vacated by Piontek, in July 1993.

Continuing with many players from the team that won the gold medal at the Mediterranean Games, Terim achieved a significant success by taking Turkey to the 1996 European Football Championship.

Following the tournament, Fatih Terim's contract expired and the national team parted ways with him.

RETURN TO GALATASARAY

His performance with the national teams opened the doors of his home, Galatasaray, to Terim once again.

Fatih Terim entered the gates of the Florya Metin Oktay Facilities, which he had left as team captain in 1985, as head coach in 1996.

Galatasaray, established under Terim's management, achieved a record difficult to break by winning the Süper Lig championship four times in a row between 1996 and 2000. During this period, the yellow-and-red team experienced two Turkish Cup and two Presidential Cup victories.

Galatasaray, under the management of Terim, which achieved successful results in Turkey and Europe, also lifted the UEFA Cup in the 1999-2000 season, earning the title of the first and only team in Turkish football history to win a cup in Europe.

FIORENTINA AND MILAN ADVENTURE

The UEFA Cup he won with Galatasaray enabled Fatih Terim to open up to Europe.

Taking charge of Fiorentina, one of Italy's deep-rooted clubs, in June 2000, Terim carried his team to the final of the Italian Cup, even though he could not get the desired results in the league. The experienced coach resigned from his post before the final match following problems he experienced with the management.

Starting to coach the world-famous Milan team at the end of the season, Terim could not find what he was looking for, and they parted ways in November 2001.

SECOND GALATASARAY PERIOD

Following his Italian adventure, Fatih Terim took charge of Galatasaray for the second time.

The yellow-and-red club, which did not continue with Romanian coach Mircea Lucescu despite winning the championship, brought Fatih Terim to the head coaching position once again in 2002.

Entering the gates of Florya for the third time, Terim served for two seasons. Fatih Terim, who finished second in his first season and sixth in the following season, left his post.

NATIONAL TEAM AND EURO 2008

Following the failures experienced by the A National Team, Fatih Terim's door was knocked on once again in June 2005.

The A National Team, under the management of Fatih Terim, which could not get a visa despite playing in the play-offs in the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, earned the right to participate in the 2008 European Championship. Marking the tournament, which was jointly organized by Austria and Switzerland, with comebacks, Turkey displayed a historic success by playing in the semi-finals.

Fatih Terim, who was the architect of the success at EURO 2008 and was chosen as the best coach of the tournament, left his post in 2009 because participation in the 2010 FIFA World Cup could not be achieved.

CAME TO GALATASARAY FOR THE THIRD TIME

Following the 2010-2011 season, one of the worst in Galatasaray's history, the management of the yellow-and-red club knocked on Fatih Terim's door once again.

Ünal Aysal, who was elected president, announced in May 2011 that he had appointed Terim to the post. The experienced coach won the Süper Lig championship for 2 consecutive seasons with the good squad that was built.

During this period, Terim, who lifted the TFF Super Cup 2 times, also displayed a successful performance by seeing the quarter-finals in the UEFA Champions League once.

BECAME TURKEY'S FOOTBALL DIRECTOR

While his coaching duty at Galatasaray continued, Terim took charge of the A National Team for 4 matches in the first half of 2013.

The experienced coach prepared the crescent-and-star team for the matches in the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers while managing the yellow-and-red team. The relationship between Terim, who was successful in the national team, and Galatasaray Club President Ünal Aysal soured. Aysal parted ways with Fatih Terim, who had achieved significant successes, in September 2013.

Leaving Galatasaray, Terim was appointed as Turkey's Football Director by the Turkish Football Federation with very broad powers. Also coaching the A National Team, Terim added a new one to his successes by taking the crescent-and-star team to the 2016 European Championship. During this period, Terim signed off on many important decisions, including the foreign player rule.

Due to the failure to advance from the group at EURO 2016 and some events that occurred within the team and in Terim's private life, the national team parted ways with Terim once again in 2017.

FOURTH GALATASARAY PERIOD

Terim was brought to the head coaching position once again at Galatasaray, which was wounded in the championship race in the 2017-2018 season.

The yellow-and-red team, under the management of Terim, who passed his rivals by coming from behind, finished that season as champions. The experienced coach, who led his team to a happy ending the following season as well, won the 8th Süper Lig championship of his career.

During this time, Fatih Terim experienced one more Turkish Cup and one more TFF Super Cup championship. Thus, the number of cups in Terim's career rose to 17.

Galatasaray, under the management of Terim, which could not get the desired results in the 2019-2020 season, when the new type of coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic was experienced, also lost the championship to Beşiktaş by goal difference in the 2020-2021 season.

In the 2021-2022 season, Galatasaray went into restructuring under the management of president Burak Elmas. When the desired results could not be obtained in the league despite the successful performance in Europe, they parted ways with Fatih Terim once again.

LAST ADVENTURE GREECE

Fatih Terim most recently coached Panathinaikos, one of the teams in the Greek League.

Fatih Terim, who remained unemployed for about 2 years after leaving Galatasaray for the fourth time, took charge of the Greek representative in December 2023.

When the expected championship did not come at the end of the season, Panathinaikos also parted ways with Terim.