Umut Güzelses ( he, אומיט גונזאלס; born May 15, 1987) is a

Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

Israeli Israeli may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the State of Israel * Israelis, citizens or permanent residents of the State of Israel * Modern Hebrew, a language * ''Israeli'' (newspaper), published from 2006 to 2008 * Guni Israeli ...

footballer.

Childhood in Israel

The Güzelses family are

Sephardi Jews Sephardic (or Sephardi) Jews (, ; lad, Djudíos Sefardíes), also ''Sepharadim'' , Modern Hebrew: ''Sfaradim'', Tiberian: Səp̄āraddîm, also , ''Ye'hude Sepharad'', lit. "The Jews of Spain", es, Judíos sefardíes (or ), pt, Judeus sefar ...

, descendants of refugees who fled the

Spanish Inquisition The Tribunal of the Holy Office of the Inquisition ( es, Tribunal del Santo Oficio de la Inquisición), commonly known as the Spanish Inquisition ( es, Inquisición española), was established in 1478 by the Catholic Monarchs, King Ferdinand ...

. They

emigrated Emigration is the act of leaving a resident country or place of residence with the intent to settle elsewhere (to permanently leave a country). Conversely, immigration describes the movement of people into one country from another (to permanentl ...

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

when Umut was three years old, but found acclimation to be difficult.

Professional career in Israel

Umut began his career with Israeli club

Hapoel Tel Aviv Hapoel Tel Aviv ( he, הפועל תל אביב) is a sports club in Israel, founded in the 1920s, and part of the Hapoel association. It runs several sports clubs and teams in Tel Aviv which have competed in a variety of sports over the years, suc ...

. In order to keep his Turkish citizenship and avoid conscription in to the Israeli army, he joined the Turkish army for a term of three months. Hapoel was reluctant to let him go after Umut's father said that he had an offer from a top flight Turkish club. It was only after Umut's father climbed on top of one of the floodlights at the club's training ground and threatened to jump, that Umut was released from his contract.

Professional career in Turkey

In 2005, Umut joined Turkish powerhouse Fenerbahçe. He made his debut in a match against

Sivasspor Sivasspor Kulübü, known as Demir Grup Sivasspor due to sponsorship reasons, is a Turkish sports club based in Sivas. The primary department of the club is men's football. Formed in 1967, its football department competes in Süper Lig, as of 201 ...

on November 11, 2006. He was brought on in the 89th minute. He is currently on loan with

Maccabi Herzliya Maccabi Herzliya F.C. ( he, מועדון כדורגל מכבי הרצליה, ''Moadon Kaduregel Maccabi Herzliya'') is an Israeli football club based in Herzliya. The club is currently in and plays at the Herzliya Municipal Stadium. History A ...

after being on loan with

in the previous season. His contract with Fenerbahçe expires May 31, 2011.

Career notes

Umut signed a four-year contract with Fenerbahçe on 1 June 2007 and was subsequently loaned to

. Umut chose to play for Turkey U21 and played against

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

on 17 January 2007 for U21 level.Milli Maçlar
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Statistics

Footnotes

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Guzelses, Umut 1987 births Living people Footballers from Istanbul Turkish footballers Turkey under-21 international footballers Israeli footballers Turkish emigrants to Israel Turkish Jews Israeli Jews Jewish men's footballers Fenerbahçe S.K. footballers Hapoel Tel Aviv F.C. players Maccabi Herzliya F.C. players Süper Lig players Israeli Premier League players Liga Leumit players Association football forwards Israeli people of Turkish-Jewish descent