Okay Yokuşlu
Okay Yokuşlu (Turkish pronunciation: [okaj jokuʃɫu], born 9 March 1994) is a Turkish professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for EFL Championship club West Bromwich Albion and the Turkey national team.
 Yokuşlu with Turkey in 2018 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Okay Yokuşlu[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 9 March 1994[2] | ||
| Place of birth | Konak, Izmir, Turkey | ||
| Height | 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in)[3] | ||
| Position(s) | Defensive midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | West Bromwich Albion | ||
| Number | 35 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2002–2006 | Karşıyaka | ||
| 2006–2010 | Altay | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2010–2011 | Altay | 33 | (4) |
| 2011–2015 | Kayserispor | 102 | (7) |
| 2015–2018 | Trabzonspor | 86 | (6) |
| 2018–2022 | Celta | 76 | (2) |
| 2021 | → West Bromwich Albion (loan) | 16 | (0) |
| 2022 | → Getafe (loan) | 11 | (0) |
| 2022– | West Bromwich Albion | 39 | (4) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2009 | Turkey U15 | 6 | (3) |
| 2009–2010 | Turkey U16 | 6 | (1) |
| 2009–2011 | Turkey U17 | 25 | (4) |
| 2011–2013 | Turkey U19 | 10 | (2) |
| 2012–2014 | Turkey U20 | 12 | (1) |
| 2012–2015 | Turkey U21 | 10 | (0) |
| 2015– | Turkey | 39 | (1) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 18 August 2023 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 7 September 2021 | |||
Club career
On 27 June 2011, at the age of 17, he signed for Kayserispor for a record transfer fee for Altay of TRY 2.3 million (€1 million).[4] He made his Süper Lig debut in the starting line-up in which Kayserispor were beaten by Antalyaspor with 1–0 final score, on 16 September 2011.[5]
On 1 February 2021, Yokuşlu joined English club West Bromwich Albion on loan from RC Celta de Vigo, for the remainder of the 2020–21 season.[6] Six days later, he made his debut for Albion as a substitute for Romaine Sawyers in a 0–2 away league defeat by Tottenham Hotspur.[7]
On 26 January 2022, Yokuşlu moved to fellow La Liga side Getafe CF on loan until June.[8]
On 18 July 2022, Yokuşlu returned to now EFL Championship club West Bromwich Albion on a three-year contract following his departure from Celta Vigo.[9] He scored his first goal for the club on 1 November 2022 in a 1-0 home win against Blackpool.[10] On 5 May 2023, Yokuşlu won West Brom's 2022/23 players' player of the Year award in his first full season with the club. [11]
International career
Okay was selected for Turkey's U-20 squad for the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup. He scored "a beautifully judged chip over the stranded [goalkeeper] from 25 yards (23 m)" to complete the hosts' 2–1 defeat of Australia and progression to the last 16 of the competition.[12] On 6 November 2015, Yokuşlu was selected for the Turkey national football team to play friendlies against Qatar and Greece respectively.[13] He made his debut as a late sub against Greece in a 0–0 tie.[14]
Career statistics
Club
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Altay | 2009–10 | TFF First League | 12 | 2 | 2 | 1 | — | 0 | 0 | 14 | 3 | |
| 2010–11 | TFF First League | 21 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 21 | 2 | ||
| Total | 33 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 5 | ||
| Kayserispor | 2011–12 | Süper Lig | 22 | 2 | 2 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 24 | 2 | |
| 2012–13 | Süper Lig | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 24 | 0 | ||
| 2013–14 | Süper Lig | 25 | 1 | 4 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 29 | 1 | ||
| 2014–15 | TFF First League | 31 | 4 | 3 | 1 | — | 0 | 0 | 34 | 5 | ||
| Total | 102 | 7 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 111 | 8 | ||
| Trabzonspor | 2015–16 | Süper Lig | 27 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 2[lower-alpha 1] | 1 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 3 |
| 2016–17 | Süper Lig | 29 | 2 | 8 | 3 | — | 0 | 0 | 37 | 5 | ||
| 2017–18 | Süper Lig | 30 | 2 | 3 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 33 | 2 | ||
| Total | 86 | 6 | 18 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 10 | ||
| Celta | 2018–19 | La Liga | 30 | 2 | 2 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 32 | 2 | |
| 2019–20 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 26 | 0 | |||
| 2020–21 | 12 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 14 | 0 | |||
| 2021–22 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 | |||
| Total | 76 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 81 | 2 | ||
| West Bromwich Albion (loan) | 2020–21 | Premier League | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 16 | 0 | |
| Getafe (loan) | 2021–22 | La Liga | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 | |
| West Bromwich Albion | 2022–23 | EFL Championship | 38 | 4 | 2 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | 41 | 4 | |
| West Brom Total | 54 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 57 | 4 | ||
| Career total | 362 | 23 | 36 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 401 | 29 | ||
- Appearance(s) in UEFA Europa League
International
- As of match played 7 September 2021[17]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Turkey | 2015 | 1 | 0 |
| 2016 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2017 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2018 | 11 | 1 | |
| 2019 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2020 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2021 | 10 | 0 | |
| Total | 39 | 1 | |
International goals
- Scores and results list Turkey's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Yokuşlu goal.[17]
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 27 March 2018 | Podgorica City Stadium, Podgorica, Montenegro |  Montenegro | 2–0 | 2–2 | Friendly |
References
- "Acta del Partido celebrado el 18 de mayo de 2019, en Vigo" [Minutes of the Match held on 18 May 2019, in Vigo] (in Spanish). Royal Spanish Football Federation. Retrieved 17 June 2019.
- "FIFA U-20 World Cup Turkey 2013 List of Players: Turkey" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 23 June 2013. p. 21. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 June 2013.
- "Okay Yokuşlu: Overview". Premier League. Retrieved 13 July 2022.
- "Okay Kayserispor'da". 27 June 2011.
- "Futbolcu Bilgi Bankası>> Oyuncular - Futbolcular" (in Turkish). TFF. Retrieved 15 June 2010.
- "YOKUŞLU LINKS UP WITH ALBION ON LOAN". West Bromwich Albion F.C. 1 February 2021. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
- "Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 West Bromwich Albion: Harry Kane scores on return". BBC Sport. 7 February 2021. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
- "Okay Yokuşlu cedido, con opción de compra, al Getafe CF" [Okay Yokuşlu loaned, with a buyout clause, to Getafe CF] (in Spanish). RC Celta Vigo. 26 January 2022. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
- "WELCOME HOME OKAY YOKUŞLU". www.wba.co.uk. 18 July 2022. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
- "West Brom 1-0 Blackpool". BBC Sport. 1 November 2022. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
- "Okay Yokuslu wins Marc Darcy player's player of the season award". West Bromwich Albion. 5 May 2023. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
- "Hosts through as Aussies exit". FIFA. 28 June 2013. Archived from the original on 1 July 2013. Retrieved 18 May 2014.
- Turkish Football Federation. "Turkish A National Team Squad Announced for Qatar and Greece Matches". Retrieved 8 November 2015.
- "TURKEY GREECE - Match Details TFF".
- "O. Yokuşlu". Soccerway. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
- "Okay Yokuşlu@Mackolik.com" (in Turkish). Retrieved 14 June 2011.
- "Yokuşlu, Okay". National Football Teams. Retrieved 29 March 2018.
External links
- Okay Yokuşlu at the Turkish Football Federation
- Okay Yokuşlu – UEFA competition record (archive)
- Okay Yokuşlu – FIFA competition record (archived)
- Profile at Eurosport
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