Osman Zeki Korkmaz: People of Sivas will be proud of their team

Sivasspor Head Coach Osman Zeki Korkmaz, one of the teams in the Trendyol 1st League, made statements to members of the press before today's training session. Stating that they have largely completed their squad restructuring at this point, Korkmaz said, "There may be 1-2 more players joining us in the next few days.

After that, we will focus all our energy on the league. First of all, I can say that we will create a team that gives joy and pride to all people from Sivas and Sivasspor fans. After the team was relegated from the league, an economic burden arose from this situation. As you know, there were players with high-cost contracts that were still ongoing.

The process of turning these players into transfer revenue took time. One of them was Rey Manaj. Apart from this, we were looking for players who would carry us to our goal in this league to replace the names who left, both those whose contracts expired and those who left with a transfer fee. The reason we mention the economic burden is because we had to act very carefully and sensitively here." he said.

"WE HAD TO BE PATIENT"

Stating that they continued their transfer efforts without putting the club into economic distress, Korkmaz said, "If we had followed a transfer policy with only short-term reactions without thinking long-term, we could have put Sivasspor into an economic bottleneck from which it could not emerge for years. That is why we had to be a little patient in the process, both thinking about the future of the club and finding players who would represent us correctly on the pitch. Our goal was to find names that were both suitable for our economy and could represent us on the pitch.

This naturally extended the transfer process a bit. We also wore ourselves out from time to time during this process. However, instead of buying a large number of players, we preferred to add the right names to the squad under suitable conditions. In this process, we added Çağlayan Menderes, Mert Çelik, Ahmet Çakmak, and Kamil Fidan, who stood out with their performances in the 2nd League, to our squad.

Of course, there were transfer expectations in the public and among our fans that would create more excitement in terms of names. However, when these friends take the field and Sivasspor fans see their performances, they will realize that the right steps have been taken. In addition to these players, we have also transferred Benjamin Kimpioka and Aliou Badji so far. As for the attacking zone, we will make an evaluation in the coming days by looking at the performances of the players we have.

Sometimes you make a plan, but needs become clear according to the synergy created on the pitch. Perhaps another reinforcement in the attacking line may come to the agenda. We keep ourselves open on this matter. We are acting together as the management, economic structure, and technical team," he said.

"PEOPLE OF SIVAS WILL BE PROUD OF THEIR TEAM"

Stating that they expect patience from the fans, Korkmaz noted the following:

"No one can know the result of football, but there will be a Sivasspor that is enjoyable to watch and promising on the pitch. Sivas is a great city not only with its geographical borders but also with its culture. In fact, we have the potential to organize much better things across the country. I want to go beyond these borders and address the people of Sivas abroad: We have one Sivasspor, we have one Sivas. Today we had fans who came from 3,500 - 4,000 kilometers away. We feel their hearts here too. We expect unity and solidarity from all people of Sivas around the world this season. Because this season is the time to be strong by closing in on ourselves and standing shoulder to shoulder. I can say with peace of mind that no matter where they are in the world, people from Sivas will be proud when they watch this team. They will both enjoy and take pride in the struggle the team puts up on the pitch. We will be an organized team that knows what it is doing and provides enjoyment."

"ERZURUM FK IS AN AMBITIOUS TEAM"

Finally, evaluating the Erzurumspor FK match they will play away in the first week of the league, Korkmaz said, "Erzurumspor is a team that has balanced its squad structure in recent years and built ambitious squads. It was a team that was thought to be promoted to the Super League for a long time last season. Although they have experienced a decline recently, they have a play-off culture and a habit of playing for the top. It will be a difficult match. 3 of our first 4 matches in the league are away, and one of them is the Erzurumspor match. First of all, we will go out on the pitch and play a characterful football. We will see together what the result will be. However, the only thing we will not compromise on will be the game discipline and fighting spirit on the pitch." he said.