Efecan Karaca

Efecan Karaca's career very nearly stalled before it started. Protecting the ball in a match that led to his move to Galatasaray, he broke his arm; the first operation failed, a second followed, and he spent six months out of the game.

Senior football, when it arrived, came in fragments — a loan at Gaziantepspor, spells at Kartalspor, Adanaspor, Adana Demirspor and Sarıyer. The turn came in 2013, when he joined Alanyaspor on a free transfer. What followed there has defined him: more than 400 league appearances and 42 goals, and a central role in the club's climb from the second division into the Süper Lig.

That consistency drew attention from the top of Turkish football. In 2022, both Fenerbahçe and Galatasaray were linked with him, but neither deal went through — Galatasaray, the club that had first signed him as a boy, blocked the transfer over a disputed fee of around $2 million.

His performances at Alanyaspor also earned him international recognition. Karaca was capped eight times by Turkey between 2019 and 2021, scoring once, against Germany in a friendly in October 2020. Earlier in his career, he had won the Süper Lig title and the Turkish Super Cup with Galatasaray.