Former Fenerbahçe striker Selçuk Yula dies aged 53

ISTANBUL

Former Fenerbahçe and Turkish national football team forward Selçuk Yula has died at the age of 53 after suffering a heart attack in Istanbul on the morning of Aug. 6. Hürriyet photo

Former Fenerbahçe and Turkish national football team forward Selçuk Yula has died at the age of 53 after suffering a heart attack in Istanbul on the morning of Aug. 6.

Yula scored 134 goals for Fenerbahçe between 1979 and 1986, and finished the Turkish championship as the top goal scorer for two consecutive seasons (1981-82 and 1982-83).

“We lost our captain,” read a message on the opening page of Fenerbahçe’s website. The club also flew its flag at half-staff at the Can Bartu Facilities, Fenerbahçe’s training ground in Istanbul.

The Ankara-born player began his career at Şekerspor in 1977 and joined Fenerbahçe two years later. In 1983, he was a member of the double trophy-winning Fenerbahçe team. However, he is probably best remembered for scoring the opening goal in Fenerbahçe’s famous 3-2 win over Bordeaux in the UEFA Champion Clubs’ Cup first round first-leg game.

Yula made 22 appearances for the national team, scoring four goals.

The prolific forward played in the German Bundesliga for Berlin outfit SV Blau-Weiss ‘90 in the 1986-87 season. He made his return to Turkey to play for Sarıyer, where he would score 30 goals in four seasons. Yula finished his career with a season with Fenerbahçe’s arch rival, Galatasaray in 1992.

He then became a popular pundit, for his work on Fenerbahçe’s official club television channel and as a columnist for several newspapers. He was last writing for the sports daily Fotomaç.