The Turkish Super Lig: A new ‘retirement home’ for washed-up English footballers, or much more than that?

Following an influx of faltering English players, it is easy to describe the Turkish Super Lig as simply a ‘retirement home’. In reality, it offers great opportunity.

Danny Drinkwater to Kasimpasa? After a transfer even more unexpected than a Football Manager simulated one, ten seasons deep into a game, Chelsea fans might be forgiven for having to look up who Drinkwater’s new loan club are and where they play.

It is hard not to feel sorry for Drinkwater. After an exciting title-winning season with Leicester in which he excelled, and a following year proving he was not simply a one-season-wonder, he was bought by Chelsea for £35 million. To put it bluntly, however, after arriving in West London, with the helping hand of a few injuries, his career nosedived.

Failing to live up to the bill at Stamford Bridge, he was soon relegated to the bottom of Chelsea’s seemingly unending loan list. In the 2019-20 season, half of the season was spent at Burnley, half at Aston Villa and he made just six appearances in all competitions.

To add to his woes, all recent headlines concerning Drinkwater have highlighted off-field issues – a training ground headbutt at Villa, a drink-driving conviction at Chelsea, and a fight outside a night club at Burnley.

It is understandable that Drinkwater has sought some playing time outside the Premier League – a league that has been something of a cycle of misery for the former England international in recent years. Kasimpasa, however, of Turkey’s Super Lig, may seem a less obvious choice for his football.

They sit ten places off European qualification in 15th and finished tenth last season. They are probably the only club of Istanbul’s many that you’ve never heard of. Drinkwater has not exactly entered into Turkish footballing pedigree.

Drinkwater is not the only faltering English footballer to turn to the Turkish delights of the Super Lig and it seems as though more high-profile Brits have sought playing time in the league to revive their careers.

Most high-profile of these recently has been fellow-Daniel, Daniel Sturridge. Sturridge, who, like Drinkwater, has to draw some sympathy for his terrible luck with injury, fell out of favour towards the end of his spell at Liverpool and was not able to revive his career on loan with West Brom. There are unfortunate off-the-pitch parallels with Drinkwater too: Sturridge’s headlines were not football-related either, but rather for betting rule breaches in July 2019.

Sturridge too sought to rejuvenate his faltering career in Turkey, in his case at then Europa League group stage participants Trabzonspor. Unfortunately, Sturridge was unable to shake the off-field issues that plagued him in the later stages of his Liverpool career.

He was released one year into his three-year contract on the same day as receiving a four-month worldwide ban for breaching betting protocol. Before this, though, Sturridge had been finding a bit of form, with seven goals in 16 games – his move had not been a total disaster.

Similarly, Aaron Lennon has sought a career resurgence in Turkey and the former-Spurs man can now be found plying his trade at relegation contenders Kayserispor after leaving Burnley at the end of last season.

Historically, Turkey has not been a destination for English footballers of this standard – Sturridge is a one-time Premier League and two-time Champions League and FA Cup winner, Drinkwater an FA Cup and Premier League winner, and all are former-England internationals. In the past, English players have been found in Turkey, but most are far from household names – Jake Jervis, Luke Moore and Ian Henderson to name a few.

There have been some more famous Brits, however, to bridge the Bosphorus and dazzle fans in Turkey – Kevin Campbell and Anton Ferdinand are two notable examples. They, however, are somewhat isolated historic instances and Drinkwater, Sturridge and Lennon may be have started a trend for Englishmen looking for playing time in the Super Lig.

It is easy to dismiss the Super Lig as simply a ‘retirement home’ for players in the twilight of their careers. This is not a misplaced criticism; in the 2019-20 season 14 of the 18 teams boasted at least one ex-Premier League player over the age of 30 in their starting line-up and Istanbul Başakşehir won the league with the likes of Gael Clichy, Martin Srktel, Robinho and Demba Ba in their ranks.

Turkey, however, offers so much more than other ‘retirement home’ leagues such as MLS or the Chinese Super League even though it cannot promise the exorbitant wages of the latter.

Most obviously, the Super Lig offers the chance for regular European football with two Champions League and two Europa League qualifying spots for the league’s top four and one for the cup winners. If the transfer options are to fade away into anonymity in America or China or stay relevant in Europe like this, the choice to play in Turkey is simple.

For players, who, if they stayed put would be irregular starters at mid-table top flight sides elsewhere in Europe, this is enticing and brings quality to the league too. In addition, the league’s standings are unpredictable and most teams have some chance of reaching the higher places in the league. Just ask Istanbul Başakşehir – last year’s champions, who currently reside in 18th – the highest of the relegation places.

This opportunity for success is emphasised by the fact that in the last six seasons the winning team has not had more than a five point winning margin – the competition is fierce.

The passion of Turkish fans, perhaps nowhere more so than at the three traditional giants of Istanbul – Besiktas, Galatasaray, and Fenerbahçe – is a big draw too. Turkish stadia are famous for their ferocious noise and colour and fans notorious for their passion. Once more, Turkey is an attractive option for those wanting to revive their careers.

Despite the aforementioned Englishmen not having revived their careers in a way they may have hoped – yet at least –, they have reason to believe they can and others have done so. Most prominently but hardly alone, Ryan Babel, Ricardo Quaresma, and Nani were all recalled to their national teams following excellent spells in the Super Lig, proving the ‘retirement home’ epithet far from true.

Not only is the Super Lig a destination for older footballers either: In January, former-QPR and highly rated youngster Bright Osayi-Samuel followed in the footsteps of his older compatriots and signed with Fenerbahçe. He is already in the starting line-up. He has reason to be positive about moving to Turkey too and is following the same development path as Frank Ribery, Jay-Jay Okocha, and Les Ferdinand, to name but a few.

Turkey then is far from just a ‘retirement home’. It provides opportunity for players both young and old on a stage unmatched by many of their alternatives. A recent influx of English players in the league is very understandable. Maybe they will set the standard for many more to follow.

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