Arda Güler recently earned the attention of football fans worldwide. After the great competition among the top Europe teams for Arda, transferring to Real Madrid from Fenerbahçe brought a shine to him very quickly and only at the age of eighteen. Madridistas are looking forward to seeing how much potential he has and how he will evolve his style. A lot of commentators stated Real Madrid with its legendary players cannot be the best choice for a young player to have enough game time and improve his skills; however, Arda may stand out with his vision and determined mind. Madridistas have already loved him so much and showed their support for him, but he must work hard to please his team known for its perfectionism.
Güler was born on the 25th of February, 2005, in Ankara. His parents (Serap & Ümit Güler) showed great care for his development and realized their sons’ ability and interest in football at a very early age. He was trained at Gençlerbirliği Football Academy from 2014 to February 2019. In February 2019, Fenerbahçe Academy signed him on their youth team. He made his first appearance in A Team at the age of 16, which is a massive achievement for his age. When he got the ten-number shirt previously worn by legendary players such as Alex De Souza at Fenerbahçe, he was just seventeen. At that time, he was given chances to show his ability to the world; he was scoring goals and giving assists very tactically. He was named a game-changer by some commentators due to his performance at his former club and national team. He became the youngest player to ever score for Türkiye and the fourth youngest player in history to score goals and assist in a match. He was the future of Fenerbahçe and a future Turkish legend for his fans; however, his dreams were bigger than any Turkish player could have imagined. Therefore, recently, the sad news reached Fenerbahçe fans.
Arda had already impressed top European clubs’ managers who have since been eager to establish their future teams since elder legends are retiring or transferring to less competitive clubs day by day. However, Fenerbahçe needed Arda to stay in order to become the champion next year, as he was a skilled player with a low price considering other transfers. Real Madrid, Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germen, Borussia Dortmund, Bayern Munich, Manchester City, Manchester United, Arsenal, Tottenham, Liverpool, and many more teams were asserted to offer him to join their club. Nevertheless, no other team than Real Madrid and Barcelona could have been the favorite teams of the young legend. There were two choices for Arda: staying one more year at Fenerbahçe and then transferring to Barcelona or transferring to Real Madrid immediately, bringing a lot of money to both his club and his family. Fenerbahçe and its fans were very glad about the first choice, as they knew they were not going to be able to hold Arda in Türkiye anymore but one more year could have been enough for the team to get better. Arda chose the second choice without listening to any criticism related to his lack of experience to compete in La Liga. He stated at the press conference that both Ancelotti and Florentino Pérez called him guaranteeing that he will not be hired for another team and telling how they are planning to develop his skills. Arda said Real Madrid is the greatest club in the world and he is very proud.
Behind the scenes, however, the
sensational transfer process divided the opinions of fans. Although most Turkish fans are very proud of him, some Fenerbahçe fans are disappointed. Arda said it was not easy for him to leave Fenerbahçe behind and that he loved his former team but that rejecting Real Madrid would have been hard. Juanmarti tweeted that Fenerbahçe will receive €20 million and a bonus of €10 million, and, in addition to all that, 20% of any future sale. Arda will receive an €8 million signing bonus, and his father will receive almost €23 million as his manager. This huge offer is perceived as a way for Real Madrid to show that it is the biggest and most glorious. At a press conference, Barcelona’s president said they did not want to compete for Arda and that the club is not willing to give more money than worth to any player. Deco stated the deal was half done when he traveled to Türkiye for Arda; however, when he arrived there, he sensed something was going on. According to commentators, Deco felt he was used to extracting more money from Real Madrid in the negotiation game. Some Barcelona fans state Arda will not meet the expectations and be another bencher for Real Madrid.
His strengths listed threaded passes, long-range passes, dictating attitude, heading, work rate, agility, fast learning, scanning, fearless play, dribbling, pressing wisely, and decision-making; his weakness listed physical presence and right foot finish. His position ratings are 71% right attacking wing, 27% center, and 1% left wing; therefore, he is expected to play as a right winger if he gets the chance since there is too much competition in the midfielder position.
Pérez showed so much respect for him in the presentation conference and said he will grow with Real Madrid’s values, such as humbleness, respect, and solidarity. He ended his speech by welcoming Arda: “Welcome home, Arda,” he said. Arda stated that he wants to continue press conferences speaking in Turkish although he knows English, and this deepened Turkish people’s love and support for him. He is the literal golden boy for the fans. His videos coming from Real Madrid’s camp are giving hope; especially his goal which left three defenders on the ground was admired. Despite all criticism, a lot of Turkish players praise him not just for his game style but also for his attitude.
We hope he will reach all his dreams and won’t lose his willingness to represent Türkiye proudly.
Written by Nehir Türkmen
Edited by Melisa Altıntaş & Yağmur Ece Nisanoğlu
Works Cited:
Sanderson, Tom. “How Arda Guler ‘Played’ FC Barcelona And Fenerbahce To Receive High Real Madrid Commissions.” Forbes, 11 July 2023, https://www.forbes.com/sites/tomsanderson/2023/07/11/how-arda-guler-played-fc-barcelona-and-fenerbahce-to-receive-high-real-madrid-bonuses-and-commissions/?sh=3f98660c51a6
Barlow, Ruairidh. “Barcelona Sporting Director Deco believes he was used by Arda Guler to extract €53m Real Madrid deal - Football España.” Football Espana, 11 July 2023, https://www.football-espana.net/2023/07/11/barcelona-sporting-director-deco-believes-he-was-used-by-arda-guler-to-extract-e53m-real-madrid-deal
Gott, Tom. “Arda Guler: Joan Laporta explains why Barcelona accepted defeat to Real Madrid.” 90min.com, 11 July 2023, https://www.90min.com/posts/arda-guler-joan-laporta-why-barcelona-accepted-defeat-real-madrid
Pythagoras in Boots. “How GOOD is Arda Guler? Tactical Analysis | Skills (HD).” YouTube, 8 July 2023, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gnP9Fkfu-YI
“Arda Güler Real Madrid'de | Transferin dünü, bugünü ve yarınları.” YouTube, 7 July 2023, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dr8DYM519FI
“Arda Güler resmen Real Madrid'de | İmza töreni ve basın toplantısı.” YouTube, 7 July 2023, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afzQsw05mJA
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