Gökhan Zan (born 7 September 1981 in

Antakya Antakya (), historically known as Antioch ( el, Ἀντιόχεια; hy, Անտիոք, Andiok), is the capital of Hatay Province, the southernmost province of Turkey. The city is located in a well-watered and fertile valley on the Orontes Rive ...

) is a retired Turkish

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

Club career

Zan started his career with

Hatayspor Hatayspor Kulübü, known as Atakaş Hatayspor due to sponsorship reasons, is a Turkish professional football club located in Antakya, Hatay Province. History Hatayspor was founded on 23 July 1967. In July 2020, the team achieved promotion to t ...

and then moved on to

Çanakkale Dardanelspor Çanakkale Dardanel Spor Kulübü is a sports club located in Çanakkale, Turkey. History Çanakkale Dardanel SAŞ was founded as Çanakkalespor after merging Boğazspor, Türkgücü and Kalespor, which were amateur clubs of Çanakkale. The club ...

before joining Beşiktaş in 2003. He needed time to make his mark with the Turkish giants, and spent a spell on loan with

Gaziantepspor Gaziantepspor was a Turkish football club located in the city of Gaziantep. Formed in 1969 and dissolved in 2020, Gaziantepspor were nicknamed the ''Şahinler'' (The Falcons). The club colours were black and red, and they played their home matche ...

before returning to the

İnönü Stadium İnönü may refer to. People with the surname * İsmet İnönü (1884–1973), Turkish soldier, statesman and the second President of Turkey * Erdal İnönü (1926–2007), Turkish physicist and politician, and the son of İsmet * Mevhibe İnön ...

Galatasaray

Following 2008–09 season-end, Zan could not negotiate a deal with

Beşiktaş Beşiktaş () is a district and municipality of Istanbul, Turkey, located on the European shore of the Bosphorus strait. It is bordered on the north by Sarıyer and Şişli, on the west by Kağıthane and Şişli, on the south by Beyoğlu, and ...

. On 22 June 2009, it had been announced that Zan made a deal with

Galatasaray Galatasaray Spor Kulübü (, ''Galatasaray Sports Club'') is a Turkish sports club based on the European side of the city of Istanbul in Turkey. Most notable for its association football department, the club also consists of various other de ...

for a period of 2 years starting from 2009–10 season. In further rumours, it has been written on papers that Zan had never been called by Beşiktaş in order to negotiate after his contract had been expired, which was dealt for two years within an optional second season. After 20 days with no proposal from the club, Zan have accepted Galatasaray's offer. On 27 June 2011, Zan signed a new contract, with €700,000 per annum wage plus €20,000 per game. He scored his first goal for the club on the second half of the

2010–11 Süper Lig The 2010–11 Süper Lig (known as the ''Spor Toto Süper Lig'' for sponsorship reasons) was the 53rd season since its establishment. The season began on 14 August 2010 and concluded on 22 May 2011. Fenerbahçe claimed their 18th title, but th ...

season which came in the first half as the game ended in a 1–1 draw against

Kayserispor Kayseri Spor Kulübü, commonly known as Kayserispor, is a Turkish professional football club based in Kayseri. They play their home matches at the Kadir Has Stadium in red and yellow kits. The team has won one Turkish Cup in 2008 and also fini ...

. Zan played 12 matches on the

2011–12 Süper Lig The 2011–12 Süper Lig (known as the ''Spor Toto Süper Lig'' for sponsorship reasons) was the 54th season of the Süper Lig, the top level football league of Turkey. Fenerbahçe were the defending champions. The start date of the league was ...

season and scored 2 goals, one against

Eskişehirspor Eskişehirspor Kulübü is a Turkish professional football club located in Eskişehir. Eskisehirspor has a total of six trophies, making them the sixth most trophies holders in Turkey. Founded in 1965, Eskişehirspor competed in the top division ...

in 2–0 win and the other in a 4–0 win against Ankaragücü. He was part of Galatasaray's champion squad. In early April 2013, his contract was extended for another two-years until 2015.

International career

Zan emerged as a key man for Turkey in their

Euro 2008 The 2008 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2008 or simply Euro 2008, was the 13th UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial football tournament contested by the member nations of UEFA (the Union of European ...

qualifying push, starring in seven games for

Fatih Terim Fatih Terim (born 4 September 1953) is a Turkish association football manager and former player. He is the former manager of Galatasaray, a position he previously held four times. Terim has managed several clubs in Italy (Milan and Fiorentina) ...

's side. At the tournament itself, Zan made three appearances after he was initially injured in the opening game against Portugal. He has appeared in two qualifying matches for the

2010 FIFA World Cup , image = 2010 FIFA World Cup.svg , size = 200px , caption = ''Ke Nako. (Tswana and Sotho for "It's time") Celebrate Africa's Humanity'It's time. Celebrate Africa's Humanity'' (English)''Dis tyd. Vier Afrika se mensd ...

Playing style

A tall, commanding central defender who plays with great pride and muscle but lacks agility and football intelligence. Another fault-line is his fragile physical make-up (which earned him the nickname ''the Glassman''), but he has still managed to enjoy a fine career for club and country despite his flaws.

Career statistics

Club

International

Honours

;Beşiktaş *

Süper Lig The Süper Lig (, ''Super League''), officially known as Spor Toto Süper Lig for sponsorship reasons, is a Turkish professional league for association football clubs. It is the top-flight of the Turkish football league system and is run by the ...

: 2008–09 * Türkiye Kupası: 2005–06, 2006–07, 2008–09 * Süper Kupa:

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...

;Galatasaray *

: 2011–12, 2012–13, 2014–15 * Türkiye Kupası: 2013–14 * Süper Kupa:

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...

;Turkey *

UEFA European Championship The UEFA European Football Championship, less formally the European Championship and informally the Euro, is the primary association football tournament organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). The competition is contes ...

bronze medalist:

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

References

External links

Profile
at Galatasaray.org * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Zan, Gokhan 1981 births Living people People from Antakya Turkish footballers Turkey international footballers Turkey under-21 international footballers Süper Lig players UEFA Euro 2008 players Hatayspor footballers Dardanelspor footballers Beşiktaş J.K. footballers Gaziantepspor footballers Galatasaray S.K. footballers Turkey youth international footballers Association football central defenders Sportspeople from Hatay