Kerem Aktürkoğlu: Turkey’s mercurial sharpshooter, likened to Harry Potter
Mercurial on and off the pitch, Aktürkoğlu is no media darling but his magic-like ability has coined him the moniker 'Kerem Potter.'
This article is the latest piece of xG Files’ ‘EuroFiles’ series for the upcoming European Championship, profiling 24 players from the qualified nations with expert opinions from journalists, writers, editors, and media guides from each respective nation, which you can find here.
The name Kerem Aktürkoğlu may flash the mind of some European fans, in particular Manchester United ones — scoring two in two against United in this season’s Champions League group stages.
Among those in his homeland of Turkey, the feeling is clear and universal. At 25, Aktürkoğlu is no rookie, nor is he a household name.
“Turkish-grown players mature quite late,” said Turkish journalist Barış Gerçeker. “Kerem [Aktürkoğlu] is experiencing that as well now [that] he’s 25, but he’s still learning things and trying to improve his shortcomings in his way.”
The “shortcomings” Gerçeker cities in Aktürkoğlu's career have seemingly come off the pitch rather than on it.
Aktürkoğlu, a youth product of İstanbul Başakşehir, failed to break into the first team, having to earn opportunities elsewhere and a media spat with then manager Abdullah Avcı criticising his handling of Aktürkoğlu’s development.
Vexed interactions with media, fans, and even teammates aren’t irregular for Aktürkoğlu. After a 2-0 defeat in the Turkish Cup at home to Fatih Karagümrük, he was embroiled in a tense back and forth outside the stadium before being ushered away. In his second season at Galatasaray, he was headbutted mid-match by teammate Marcão due to a heated exchange, patching it up in a training session a couple of weeks later.
Nonetheless, mercurial characters like Aktürkoğlu are usually the ones that teams are willing to abide by, with potential concerns outweighed by sheer talent, which can be argued for the Turk.
Initially spending a year on loan at Bodrum before making the permanent switch to Karacabey Belediyespor—emerging from the lower leagues with another brief move to 24 Erzincanspor—propelled the side to the fourth-tier league title as the division’s top scorer with 17.
“He was not fancied much (in his debut season for Galatasaray) and not considered to be Galatasaray’s level of player—having only been [a] pro in teams not even second tier,” said Gerçeker.
Arriving as a free transfer, as he had done in his previous transfers, with coronavirus and minor injuries hampering chances to impress—a hattrick towards the end of the season was the only real highlight point in a season of adaptations.
On Aktürkoğlu’s following season, Gerçeker said, “21-22 was the worst season of Galatasaray’s history in the league (13th place), in which they brought in Barış Alper Yılmaz.”
“Barış Alper had a similar profile to Kerem and was brought in from Ankara Keçiöengücü, another mediocre team from the second tier. In that '21-22 season, these two became the focus of the banter about Galatasaray, suggesting that “bringing in two Turkish players from [a] low-level team that plays in [the] lower tier could not have yielded a better result.”
“While Kerem scored 10 goals and provided five assists that season, despite [the] team's poor showing, he brought his own game up a notch.”
It was the first full-season sighting of Aktürkoğlu’s skillset in a Galatasaray shirt: blistering speed, excellent dribbler, weaving with flair and ingenuity, and, though a wiry shooting technique, once given the space on his right foot, his ball-striking takes place. Understandably, he was then named ‘Kerem Potter’ due to his fascination with the famous J. K. Rowling series and his magic-like ability to craft out goals.
“Coming from an all-time worst season, hiring Okan Buruk, a former Galatasaray and national team player, as a manager won the Turkish Cup with Akhisarspor, who later on sank deep in Turkish football, and then won the league title with Başakşehir, following their close pursuit for it for 4-5 seasons in a row,” added Gerçeker.
“He also had his share of relegation early in his career, but, when his name came up for Galatasaray, [there was] not much of a hesitation for anyone, and Kerem grew even bigger in his term.”
Naturally, being one of the more influential players at the apex of the Süper Lig, international caps are easier to come by, and head coach Vincenzo Montella’s 4-2-3-1 has presented a position in which Aktürkoğlu has cemented on the left in an era of predominant attacking Turkish talent.
“Out of the blue came a brand new batch of 2005-born attackers: Arda Güler of Real Madrid, Kenan Yıldız of Juventus, and Semih Kılıçsoy of Beşiktaş, [Can Uzun of Nürnberg],” reiterated Gerçeker.
Talking about Montella’s management of the current crop, Aktürkoğlu said, “Vincenzo Montella [has] instilled a [sense of] self-confidence in us. He reminded us that we are good football players.”
Offensively, a left side of Aktürkoğlu and Fenerbahçe’s fleet-footed full-back Ferdi Kadıoğlu is a tantalising proposition in theory for the upcoming European Championship. It would give Montella a different dynamic to attack opponents than a preferable central incision if needed—something Turkey has lacked for quite some years.
For Aktürkoğlu, attention turns to the national team and helping to do justice to Turkey's ‘underdog’ tag from the last Euros, which has increasingly followed since.
According to national reports, his club future is set away from Galatasaray. Multiple Premier League clubs are interested, as well as Roma and Real Sociedad, with a newly appointed agency, to push any potential deal through.
The recent arrivals of Wilfried Zaha, Hakim Ziyech, and Tetê—all natural wide players themselves—have meant a reconfiguration in the front-line rotation, yet the wizardry talent of Aktürkoğlu continued to shine, registering the second-most goal contributions (24) of his career as Galatasaray pipped Istanbul rivals Fenerbahce to another title.
You can expect Aktürkoğlu’s name to resonate amongst European fans once more in the summer.