Nuri Şahin


Nuri Şahin is a Turkish professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder. He is known for his passing ability.
He began his career at Borussia Dortmund, spending six years there and winning the Bundesliga in 2011 – including a year-long loan at Feyenoord – before signing for Real Madrid in 2011 for €10 million. In August 2012, Şahin agreed to a one-year loan deal with Liverpool, which was terminated in January 2013 to allow him to return to Dortmund on an 18-month loan. This was then made permanent, and he stayed at Dortmund until his transfer to Werder Bremen in August 2018.
Şahin represented Turkey at international level and did so since the under-16 level. He made his senior international debut in 2005 and earned 52 caps before retiring in 2017.

Personal life

Şahin was born to Turkish parents in Lüdenscheid and grew up in nearby Meinerzhagen. He has been married to his cousin Tuğba Şahin since November 2007. In September 2011, she gave birth to a son, Ömer, in Madrid. Şahin is fluent in five languages: Turkish, German, English, Dutch and Spanish. In April 2018, Şahin enrolled at Harvard Business School.

Club career

Early career

Şahin began his football career at the age of six for RSV Meinerzhagen. After spending seven seasons at the club, he was signed by professional club Borussia Dortmund in 2001.

Borussia Dortmund

On 6 August 2005, at the age of 16 years and 334 days, Şahin set a record by becoming the youngest player to have played in the Bundesliga, and on 25 November of the same year became the youngest player to score a goal in the Bundesliga, scoring for Borussia Dortmund against 1. FC Nürnberg.
On 5 July 2007, Şahin was transferred to Feyenoord in the Eredivisie on a one-year loan agreement, where he was reunited with Bert van Marwijk, his former coach at Borussia Dortmund.
Şahin returned to Dortmund, where he played an important role in the 2009–10 season, starting 33 out of 34 matches. He ended the season with four goals and eight assists. Şahin won the Bundesliga title with Dortmund in the 2010–11 season. After a strong season, in which he scored six goals and had eight assists, he was voted the Bundesliga player of the season.

Real Madrid

On 9 May 2011, after weeks of speculation, Şahin announced his departure from Dortmund in a press room at Signal Iduna Park. He signed a six-year contract with Real Madrid of La Liga. The transfer fee paid to Dortmund amounted to €10 million. He stated the main reason to join Real Madrid was because of José Mourinho and the chance of playing for a club as prestigious as Real Madrid. He made his official debut as a substitute in a 7–1 thrashing of CA Osasuna at the Santiago Bernabéu on 6 November 2011, as he had been sidelined by injury problems since August earlier that year. On 20 December 2011, he scored his first goal for Real Madrid as they thrashed SD Ponferradina 5–1 in the Copa del Rey. On 27 March 2012, he was named in the starting XI to face APOEL in the UEFA Champions League quarter-final, where his performance was praised by Mourinho and various newspapers.

Liverpool (loan)

On 25 August 2012, Real Madrid agreed to loan Şahin to Liverpool on a season-long deal, where he was given the number 4 shirt. On 2 September 2012, Şahin made his Liverpool debut in the 2–0 home defeat to Arsenal in the Premier League. On 26 September, Şahin scored his first and second goal for Liverpool in the third round of the League Cup against West Bromwich Albion as the game ended in a 2–1 win. He scored his first Premier League goal and set up two goals, three days later in a 5–2 win against Norwich City. In his five-month loan spell at Liverpool, Şahin managed to get three goals and three assists in 12 matches. After leaving Liverpool, Şahin said he was never happy at either Real Madrid or Liverpool, though he was happy to get a chance to play with captain Steven Gerrard.

Return to Borussia Dortmund

On 14 January 2013, Liverpool announced that they had in agreement with all parties terminated the loan agreement with Real Madrid and Şahin, and that this would now allow Şahin to join Borussia Dortmund on loan until the end of the 2013–14 season. Şahin spoke about the deal saying, "I realised that as a footballer and a human being, I belong here 100 per cent." Şahin also said "I noticed quickly that I only want to play for Dortmund." His return move delighted manager Jürgen Klopp. Prior his debut in the friendly match against Mainz, in which Dortmund won on penalties, Şahin said he was quite nervous for his return. Eight days later, he made his first league appearance, since leaving Dortmund, coming on as a substitute in a later minute, as Dortmund defeated Werder Bremen 5–0. On 16 March 2013, Şahin scored two goals in a 5–1 Dortmund victory over SC Freiburg.
On 27 July 2013, Şahin won the 2013 DFL-Supercup with Dortmund 4–2 against rivals Bayern Munich. On 26 October 2013, Şahin scored a goal for Dortmund in the Revierderby against rivals Schalke in a 3–1 win for Dortmund.
On 10 April 2014, Borussia Dortmund activated a clause in Sahin's contract that allowed him to return permanently for a fee reported to be in the region of €7 million.

Werder Bremen

On 31 August 2018, the last day of the 2018 summer transfer window, Şahin joined Bundesliga rivals SV Werder Bremen. According to media reports, he signed a two-year contract moving to the club on a free transfer.

International career

Şahin won the bronze ball prize at the 2005 Under-17 World Cup in Peru after a successful tournament with Turkey, finishing in fourth place. Şahin is the youngest player to have played and scored for Turkey. Notably, he scored during his debut which was a match against Germany, the country of his birth.

Career statistics

Club

International goals

Scores and results table. Turkey's goal tally first:
#DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1.8 October 2005Atatürk Olympic Stadium, Istanbul, Turkey2–02–1Friendly
2.24 May 2012Red Bull Arena, Salzburg, Austria2–03–1Friendly

Honours

Club

Feyenoord
Borussia Dortmund
Real Madrid
Turkey Youth