Semih Kaya

Semih Kaya

Semih playing for Galatasaray in 2012
Personal information
Full name	Semih Kaya
Date of birth	(1991-02-24) 24 February 1991 (age 33)
Place of birth	Bergama, Izmir, Turkey
Height	1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position(s)	Centre back
Youth career
2001–2004	Petkimspor
2004	Helvacı Bld. Gençlik ve Spor
2004–2006	Altay
2006–2009	Galatasaray
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2009–2017	Galatasaray	140	(5)
2010	→ Gaziantepspor (loan)	1	(0)
2010–2011	→ Kartalspor (loan)	18	(0)
2017–2020	Sparta Prague	28	(2)
2019	→ Galatasaray (loan)	5	(0)
2020–2022	Yeni Malatyaspor	54	(1)
2022	Galatasaray	2	(0)
International career‡
2006	Turkey U15	2	(0)
2006–2007	Turkey U16	9	(0)
2006–2008	Turkey U17	25	(1)
2007–2009	Turkey U18	10	(0)
2009	Turkey U19	2	(0)
2009–2011	Turkey U21	4	(0)
2012–2015	Turkey	23	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 14 December 2023 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 14 December 2023

Semih Kaya (Turkish pronunciation: [semihkaja] , born 24 February 1991) is a former Turkish professional footballer who played as a centre back, most recently for Galatasaray. On August 12, 2022, he announced on his social media accounts that he was leaving football. ^[1]

Club career

Early career

Kaya joined Galatasaray's youth academy from Altay's youth team when he was 15.

On 25 February 2007, when he was playing against older young players in the season of Süper Gençler Ligi (Super Youth League) against Beşiktaş, in the fifth minute of the game, a kick from Batuhan Karadeniz collided with his head, forcing him to leave the game; he later went to a hospital to undergo head surgery (coagulation).

The start of the 2008–09 season saw foreign interest in Kaya rise, with reports that Italian club Internazionale were monitoring him ahead of a transfer deal, though the rumours never materialized. ^[2]

Kaya's first Süper Lig appearance was against İstanbul B.B. on 19 February 2009. ^[3] After not receiving significant playing time, he joined fellow Süper Lig club Gaziantepspor on loan in January 2010 for the remainder of the season. ^[4] In the summer of 2010, he signed for Turkish First League side Kartalspor on loan. ^[5] On 18 October 2010, he scored two goals in the A2 Lig game against Altay. ^[6]

Return to Galatasaray

At the beginning of the 2011–12 season, Kaya was not typically selected for Galatasaray's starting line-up, but following injuries to other players, notably Gökhan Zan, and a fall in form of Servet Çetin, Galatasaray coach Fatih Terim granted him a chance to prove himself. Following a series of solid performances, he soon became first-choice centreback alongside the Czech Tomáš Ujfaluši.

Kaya scored his first goal for the club against Samsunspor on 7 January 2012 in the 51st minute of a 2–0 comeback, with the game ending 4–2 for Galatasaray. ^[7] In the 2011–12 season, he played 30 games and was a key member of the championship-winning squad. He continued to be first choice centre-back for the club and country, delivering calm and confident performances despite against top teams such as Manchester United and, internationally, against the Netherlands. He finished his second year with 36 appearances in all competitions. On 18 November 2013, his contract was extended for three years until 2016. ^[8]

Sparta Prague

On 14 July 2017, Kaya left Galatasaray and joined Czech club Sparta Prague, signing a three-year contract. ^{[9] [10]} He was loaned to Galatasaray in 18 January 2019, for the remainder of the 2018–19 season, with the Turkish club covering his wages. ^[11] On 13 July 2020, Sparta Prague announced the departure of Kaya, after a injury-plagued spell in Czechia. ^[12]

Yeni Malatyaspor

On 29 September 2020, Kaya joined Yeni Malatyaspor as a free agent. ^[13] He left the club on 31 January 2022 on a mutual contract termination. ^[14]

Galatasaray – third spell

On 3 February 2022, Kaya joined Galatasaray for the third time in his career. ^[15] On 12 August 2022, he announced his retirement from professional football. ^[16]

International career

Kaya has played for all levels of the Turkey national team, including the under-21 level despite being at a younger age at the time. He made his debut for senior Turkish side on 29 February 2012, playing the entire game against Slovakia in a 2–1 loss. ^[17] He is part of the Turkey national team for Euro 2016. ^[18]

Personal life

Kaya's grandfather was Torbesh and he emigrated from Macedonia to the Turkish city of İzmir. He is the youngest of three brothers. ^[19]

Career statistics

As of 14 December 2023 ^{[20] [21]}

Club

Club	Season	League			National Cup		League Cup		Europe		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Galatasaray	2008–09	Süper Lig	3	0	1	0	—		0	0	4	0
	2011–12		30	1	1	0	—		—		31	1
	2012–13		25	0	0	0	1	0	10	0	36	0
	2013–14		29	0	5	0	1	0	6	0	41	0
	2014–15		19	0	1	0	6	0	6	0	32	0
	2015–16		21	2	0	0	6	0	4	0	31	2
	2016–17		20	2	7	0	0	0	0	0	27	2
	Total		147	5	15	0	14	0	26	0	202	5
Gaziantepspor (loan)	2009–10	Süper Lig	1	0	0	0	—		—		1	0
Kartalspor (loan)	2010–11	TFF First League	18	0	1	0	—		—		19	0
Sparta Prague	2017–18	Czech First League	8	0	0	0	—		1	0	9	0
	2018–19		10	0	0	0	—		2	0	12	0
	2019–20		10	2	2	0	—		0	0	12	2
	Total		28	2	2	0	0	0	3	0	33	2
Galatasaray (loan)	2018–19	Süper Lig	5	0	2	0	—		—		7	0
Yeni Malatyaspor	2020–21	Süper Lig	32	1	2	0	—		—		34	1
	2021–22		22	0	0	0	—		—		22	0
	Total		54	1	2	0	0	0	0	0	56	1
Galatasaray	2021–22	Süper Lig	2	0	0	0	—		—		2	0
Career total			255	8	23	0	14	0	29	0	321	8

International

As of 12 June 2015

Turkey national team
Year	Apps	Goals
2012	8	0
2013	8	0
2014	5	0
2015	2	0
Total	23	0

Honours

Galatasaray

• Süper Lig: 2011–12, 2012–13, 2014–15, 2018–19
• Türkiye Kupası: 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2018–19
• Süper Kupa: 2008, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016

AC Sparta Prag

• Czech Cup  : 2019–20

References

1. @semihkaya_26 (12 August 2022). "Veda zamanı..." (Tweet). Archived from the original on 12 August 2022. Retrieved 18 June 2023– via Twitter.
2. Inter Milan interest in Semih
3. "Semih makes his debut". TFF.org. 19 April 2009. Retrieved 7 September 2010.
4. "Galatasaray'da büyük değişim". www.ntv.com.tr (in Turkish). 2 February 2010. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
5. "TRANSFER DOSYASI". NTVSpor.net (in Turkish). 26 August 2010. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
6. "Semih ve Erhan Kartal'a". Pasfotomac.com.tr. 22 July 2010. Retrieved 7 September 2010.
7. "Samsunspor 2 – 4 Galatasaray". Galatasaray.org. 9 April 2012. Retrieved 7 January 2012.
8. "Galatasaray Semih'in sözleşmesini uzattı". Skorer. Retrieved 18 October 2013.
9. "Semih Kaya resmen Sparta Prag'da". NTVSpor.net (in Turkish). 14 July 2017. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
10. AC Sparta Prague (14 July 2017). "Defender Semih Kaya completed his move to Sparta from Galatasaray!". Twitter. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
11. "Galatasaray re-sign defender Semih Kaya". Turkish Football News. 18 January 2019. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
12. Calli, Muhammed Enes (13 July 2020). "Turkish defender Semih Kaya leaves Sparta Prague". www.aa.com.tr. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
13. "Yeni Malatyaspor, Semih Kaya'yı kadrosuna kattı | Goal.com Türkçe". www.goal.com (in Turkish). 29 September 2020. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
14. "Yeni Malatyaspor, Semih Kaya ile yollarını ayırdı". NTVSpor.net (in Turkish). 31 January 2022. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
15. "Yuvana hoş geldin Semih Kaya!" (in Turkish). Galatasaray S.K. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
16. "Bir devrin sonu: Semih Kaya emekli oldu" [The end of an era: Semih Kaya retires]. Gaste 24 (in Turkish). 12 August 2022. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
17. "Türkiye 1-2 Slovakya". TFF.org. 9 April 2012. Retrieved 29 February 2012.
18. "UEFA EURO 2016". UEFA. Retrieved 12 June 2016.
19. "Kaya gibi stoper: Semih Kaya". TFF.org. 2 February 2009. Retrieved 19 January 2016.
20. "Semih Kaya". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 27 June 2012.
21. "Futbolcu Bilgileri". Turkish Football Federation. 27 June 2012. Retrieved 27 June 2012.

External links

• Semih Kaya on Twitter
• Semih Kaya at the Turkish Football Federation
• Semih Kaya – UEFA competition record ( archive ) 
• Semih Kaya – FIFA competition record (archived)
• Semih Kaya at www.mackolik.com (in Turkish)
• Semih Kaya at Soccerway