Turkish football club Galatasaray announced on Thursday the appointment of former national team midfielder Okan Boruk as their team’s coach for two seasons.
Boruc will become the team’s third coach since last January, succeeding renowned coach Fatih Terim and Spaniard Dominic Torrent, who both passed away after a poor season.
Istanbul Lions, one of the most titled clubs in Turkey (22 league titles), finished 13th last season, the worst result in its history.
Boruc is well known to Galatasaray as he completed his training center and defended his colors for 12 seasons in two spells (1991-2001, 2006-2008) and was crowned with him, among others, in 2000 with the European Union title . A cup competition that was merged with the Cup Winners’ Cup competition and in the same year took on the name of the Europa League “Europa League” as well as the European Super Cup.
“Welcome to your home!” Galatasaray said in a statement.
During his coaching career, the 48-year-old Boruk led Istanbul Basaksehir to the Turkish Championship in 2020, the first in the club’s history.
Boruk also played for Inter Milan (2001–2004) and Besiktas (2004–2006) before ending his football career with Istanbul Basaksehir (2008–2010).
He was part of the Turkish national team at the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan when he surprised everyone by finishing third.