Fight for FCN talent
The Turkish U21 coach Levent Sürme was still confident in October: Nuremberg’s Can Uzun and Juventus talent Kenan Yıldız have long since decided to play for the Turkish national team. Yıldız, who was born in Regensburg, recently played his first two appearances for his parents’ country – and shone. However, this is not the only reason why Uzun, who was also born in Regensburg, is now moving more into the spotlight.
A report from “Sports1According to the Turkish selection, Uzun is now also being lured with a first call-up for the A selection, while in Germany there is still a possible nomination for the U21 or U20. The Turks want to include Uzun and his friend Yıldız in the big leagues for the upcoming international matches in March.
The DFB should try harder for Uzun, who became a top performer in his first real professional season at FCN, than they did with Yıldız. Hannes Wolf wanted to convince Uzun of a future in the country of his birth. The German U20 coach and director of development showed Uzun a plan, which could include a junior level as the next step. So far, Uzun has been on the ball for the Turkish youth teams for the U17 and U18. According to the Turkish news agency “DHA”, Sürme said that they knew that Germany was still trying, but not only Yıldız but also Uzun was “very sure” with his choice.
Ex-Turkey coach Kuntz: Some talents “don’t really have a choice”
In the run-up to Yıldız’s gala performance, the former Turkish national coach Stefan Kuntz had commented on the difficulty of winning German-Turkish talents for a future in the DFB team in the Turks’ test match against Germany. “Some people who might like to play for Germany don’t really have a choice because they are simply expected to play for their parents’ country,” he told the portal.t-online.de“.
The most valuable players with nationality Germany and Türkiye
Kuntz explained what could now also apply in the Uzun case: “If Toni di Salvo (German U21 coach, editor) calls a player and invites him to the U21, but at the same time he politely declines because he has an offer from the Turkish A- team – your hands are tied.” Kuntz added: “The training of youth players in Turkey is not as good as in Germany, especially when you look at football academies or youth training centers. Talents in Germany (…) are better trained than Turkish players of the same age. Accordingly, these boys are quickly called up for the senior national team in Turkey, while in Germany they first have to go through the youth teams.”
Meanwhile, Kuntz’s former assistant Kenan Kocak emphasized on the “ran.de” portal that the pressure on the players is high when deciding for or against a national team: “It is a dilemma for many players when it comes to the question of which country they play for , if you grew up as a Turk in Germany. But I’m not a fan of trying to convince players about this. Players should follow their hearts. You shouldn’t try to play two nations against each other, but rather the player has to decide which country he wants to play for. And of course you should respect that.”
I wish him to be able to make this decision completely free of external pressure, purely on personal grounds, without ulterior motives for possible career opportunities, without influence from family/friends, without speculation about possible competitors for his position, etc. He should play for the country, to which he feels most connected. Then he should be happy with this decision in the long term because he will then play for this country out of conviction and not because he…
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