Hakan Calhanoglu reveals how close he came to a Galatasaray transfer and why he was irritated that Inter teammates didn’t listen to his warning about Juventus starlet Kenan Yildiz.
The midfielder is currently on international duty with Turkey and spoke to TV8.5 about his current form at club level.
It hasn’t all been plain sailing, as during the 1-1 draw against Napoli at San Siro, he missed his first penalty in the Nerazzurri jersey after 19 successfully converted.
“I do not run away from my responsibilities. If I make another mistake on a penalty, I will still take the next one. Some people might think that means I have a big ego, but the truth is I just have faith in myself.”
Calhanoglu also trusts his Turkey international squad teammates, including 20-year-old sensation Kenan Yildiz, who came off the bench for Juventus and scored twice to secure his team a thrilling 4-4 draw in Serie A.
“Before the game with Juventus, I told my teammates not to leave Kenan Yildiz any room to breathe. They didn’t take it very seriously and then he was the player who turned the game around.
“I said to them afterwards, I told you so!”
Calhanoglu built career at San Siro
The 30-year-old has been in Italy since 2017, as first he wore the jersey of Milan at San Siro, then crossed the city as a free agent to join Inter in the summer of 2021.
His career has gone from strength to strength with the Nerazzurri, but Calhanoglu revealed it was almost a very different story.
“I had the opportunity to return to Turkey when I was at Milan, but at that time there were presidential elections for Galatasaray and nothing came of it.
“I am an Inter player now, with a contract that I recently extended to 2027. I don’t know what will happen in future, it would be wrong for me to say anything, as I don’t want to give anyone false hope.”
He had some bad memories with Inter in Istanbul, losing the Champions League Final to Manchester City in 2023.
“It was a difficult moment for us, but a year later we won the Scudetto and became Champions of Italy for the 20th time. Now we are doing well, the next few games will be important.”