Coxie84 Posted April 24, 2023 Share Posted April 24, 2023 İzmir, the Pearl of the Aegean is the home of Altinordu FK, a storied football club infamous for having never won the Süper Lig title in their 100 year history. Can they finally defy all odds and dethrone the big three (Beşiktaş J.K., Fenerbahçe S.K. and Galatasaray S.K.) as we start my ‘The Talent Factory‘ series adventure! A new story, a new philosophy to govern football is needed, and that is where Altınordu FK steps in… These words belong to Altınordu FK, chairperson Seyit Mehmet Özkan, a club that have raised thousands of players like Leicester City’s central defender Çağlar Söyüncü and Marseille’s winger Cengiz Ünder with both of them playing for the Turkish national team. Through investing in football schools and talent development aka ‘The Talent Factory’, Altınordu FK has created a new pathway for Turkish football, when Turkish football needed it the most. Shaken by corruption, financial revenue degradation, and match-fixing scandals, Turkish football has been going through a dismal period. Just the total debt of the four powerhouses of Turkish football; Beşiktaş, Galatasaray, Fenerbahçe, and Trabzonspor, has reached near 1.5 billion Euros in January 2021, representing a 579 percent increase in the last eight years. Still, the clubs continue to overspend and evade domestic financial fair play regulations. However, it is getting more and more clear for the silent majority in the football industry that this way of football administration has reached its end. Altınordu FK… Founded in 1923, Altınordu FK are definitely not a new club, but it was not known for its innovations until 2012. When Seyit Mehmet Özkan bought the club and incorporated it in 2012, he made it very clear that his aims differ from the majority of macho football executives, whose aim usually do not go any further than winning the next game. “Our motto has always been ‘Good Person, Good Citizen, Good Player’. Our players should be at peace with themselves, be at peace with the society and be successful athletes.” says Özkan in an interview, explaining his and Altınordu FK’s philosophy. Accordingly, Altınordu FK is not only a football club, but also an educational institution. They have roughly over 10,000 youth players that take basic football education in over 150 football schools located in 40 different cities in Turkey. Youth players are accepted to the football schools starting from the age of six years old and receive football education until they reach the age of 13 years old. The development and progress of these 10,000 youth players are continuously tracked and the most successful ones join the Altınordu Football Academy (ALFA) starting from 13 years old. Having this strong foundation, Altınordu’s internal rule is that the club must have at least 34 percent homegrown players in its first-team squad. This makes Altınordu FK, one of the best teams in Europe with regards to giving its club-trained players a chance. According to the club’s own research, The Status of Club-Trained Players in Europe, the club is racing head-to-head with clubs like Athletic Bilbao and Real Sociedad, whom Altınordu considers as role models. Just like its role models, Altınordu FK does not allow non-Turkish players to play in its teams. “It has nothing to do with racism. The only aim of this policy is to give a chance to the children of this land” argues Özkan. Indeed, Altınordu FK has without a doubt the best contribution to Turkish youth national teams. In another research done by the club, New data shows Altınordu FK is a talent factory for Turkish National Teams, it is shown that between 2017 and 2021, one of every five players in youth national teams were Altınordu FK players. Thus, focusing on talent development, Altınordu has not sacrificed anything for the short-term success of its first team. Still, the team managed to stay in the second-best league in Turkish football for years, TFF 1. Lig. After missing the play-off spots for promotion in the second division, the club finally reached the Play-Off Finals this season. Although they were beaten by Altay, another İzmir club, in the final, they showed everyone that they could play for the top. Their potential promotion in the future will also be proof for other teams in Turkey, drowning in debt, to turn their attention to talent development and investments in youth. However, it is not only Turkey who should follow Altınordu’s example. In an era where football’s rulers drift away from the fans farther every day and launch projects like the European Super League purely out of greed, Altınordu offers a new philosophy. Football does not have to be based on expensive transfers which only benefit a minority of player agents and executives. Investing in education and development brings much larger benefits for the industry and society. TAKING THE REINS AT ALTINORDU… 38 year old CoxieFM is hired as the new manager of Altinordu FK. In a statement I am proud to take over the reins at this wonderful club, in what I hope will be a long term career with the side from İzmir and hoping one day we can lift the TFF 1. Lig title and then mix it with the big clubs of Turkey and win the Süper Lig and then hear the sweet sounds of the Champions League music echoing around the Alsancak Mustafa Denizli Stadyumu. Not much history in the club’s 100th year in Turkish football, but lets see if I can change this… Both board and fans are wanting me to avoid relegation this season, so there is some weight off my shoulders for a change in a save. Gives me time to work out the best players at the club and mash up tactics as well during the first season. However, I do need to impress as I am on a one year deal. I am going to use a 4-2-3-1 style tactic for Altinordu FK as I think the squad/best XI is well suited for this at the club, at the start of this series. Let’s see if I am right or will be wrong as the season/series goes on. FINAL WORDS Thank you all, for reading, RTing or liking this blog, any support means a lot!! In the meantime, please feel free to leave a comment with any feedback and questions and don’t forget to check out all the other blogs on here and you can follow me on Twitter here. See you next time and thank you for reading… 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronaldo Beckham Posted April 24, 2023 Share Posted April 24, 2023 8 minutes ago, Coxie84 said: İzmir, the Pearl of the Aegean is the home of Altinordu FK, a storied football club infamous for having never won the Süper Lig title in their 100 year history. Can they finally defy all odds and dethrone the big three (Beşiktaş J.K., Fenerbahçe S.K. and Galatasaray S.K.) as we start my ‘The Talent Factory‘ series adventure! A new story, a new philosophy to govern football is needed, and that is where Altınordu FK steps in… These words belong to Altınordu FK, chairperson Seyit Mehmet Özkan, a club that have raised thousands of players like Leicester City’s central defender Çağlar Söyüncü and Marseille’s winger Cengiz Ünder with both of them playing for the Turkish national team. Through investing in football schools and talent development aka ‘The Talent Factory’, Altınordu FK has created a new pathway for Turkish football, when Turkish football needed it the most. Shaken by corruption, financial revenue degradation, and match-fixing scandals, Turkish football has been going through a dismal period. Just the total debt of the four powerhouses of Turkish football; Beşiktaş, Galatasaray, Fenerbahçe, and Trabzonspor, has reached near 1.5 billion Euros in January 2021, representing a 579 percent increase in the last eight years. Still, the clubs continue to overspend and evade domestic financial fair play regulations. However, it is getting more and more clear for the silent majority in the football industry that this way of football administration has reached its end. Altınordu FK… Founded in 1923, Altınordu FK are definitely not a new club, but it was not known for its innovations until 2012. When Seyit Mehmet Özkan bought the club and incorporated it in 2012, he made it very clear that his aims differ from the majority of macho football executives, whose aim usually do not go any further than winning the next game. “Our motto has always been ‘Good Person, Good Citizen, Good Player’. Our players should be at peace with themselves, be at peace with the society and be successful athletes.” says Özkan in an interview, explaining his and Altınordu FK’s philosophy. Accordingly, Altınordu FK is not only a football club, but also an educational institution. They have roughly over 10,000 youth players that take basic football education in over 150 football schools located in 40 different cities in Turkey. Youth players are accepted to the football schools starting from the age of six years old and receive football education until they reach the age of 13 years old. The development and progress of these 10,000 youth players are continuously tracked and the most successful ones join the Altınordu Football Academy (ALFA) starting from 13 years old. Having this strong foundation, Altınordu’s internal rule is that the club must have at least 34 percent homegrown players in its first-team squad. This makes Altınordu FK, one of the best teams in Europe with regards to giving its club-trained players a chance. According to the club’s own research, The Status of Club-Trained Players in Europe, the club is racing head-to-head with clubs like Athletic Bilbao and Real Sociedad, whom Altınordu considers as role models. Just like its role models, Altınordu FK does not allow non-Turkish players to play in its teams. “It has nothing to do with racism. The only aim of this policy is to give a chance to the children of this land” argues Özkan. Indeed, Altınordu FK has without a doubt the best contribution to Turkish youth national teams. In another research done by the club, New data shows Altınordu FK is a talent factory for Turkish National Teams, it is shown that between 2017 and 2021, one of every five players in youth national teams were Altınordu FK players. Thus, focusing on talent development, Altınordu has not sacrificed anything for the short-term success of its first team. Still, the team managed to stay in the second-best league in Turkish football for years, TFF 1. Lig. After missing the play-off spots for promotion in the second division, the club finally reached the Play-Off Finals this season. Although they were beaten by Altay, another İzmir club, in the final, they showed everyone that they could play for the top. Their potential promotion in the future will also be proof for other teams in Turkey, drowning in debt, to turn their attention to talent development and investments in youth. However, it is not only Turkey who should follow Altınordu’s example. In an era where football’s rulers drift away from the fans farther every day and launch projects like the European Super League purely out of greed, Altınordu offers a new philosophy. Football does not have to be based on expensive transfers which only benefit a minority of player agents and executives. Investing in education and development brings much larger benefits for the industry and society. TAKING THE REINS AT ALTINORDU… 38 year old CoxieFM is hired as the new manager of Altinordu FK. In a statement I am proud to take over the reins at this wonderful club, in what I hope will be a long term career with the side from İzmir and hoping one day we can lift the TFF 1. Lig title and then mix it with the big clubs of Turkey and win the Süper Lig and then hear the sweet sounds of the Champions League music echoing around the Alsancak Mustafa Denizli Stadyumu. Not much history in the club’s 100th year in Turkish football, but lets see if I can change this… Both board and fans are wanting me to avoid relegation this season, so there is some weight off my shoulders for a change in a save. Gives me time to work out the best players at the club and mash up tactics as well during the first season. However, I do need to impress as I am on a one year deal. I am going to use a 4-2-3-1 style tactic for Altinordu FK as I think the squad/best XI is well suited for this at the club, at the start of this series. Let’s see if I am right or will be wrong as the season/series goes on. FINAL WORDS Thank you all, for reading, RTing or liking this blog, any support means a lot!! In the meantime, please feel free to leave a comment with any feedback and questions and don’t forget to check out all the other blogs on here and you can follow me on Twitter here. See you next time and thank you for reading… Nice OP. I have always wanted to do a save with Altinordu FK so I am looking forward to seeing how you get on with them. Good luck buddy. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtown1414 Posted April 24, 2023 Share Posted April 24, 2023 Not getting much love from the so-called experts. A 16th place finish predicted. Good luck, I'll be following. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheriff7 Posted April 25, 2023 Share Posted April 25, 2023 Great pics! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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