Bayern Munich mourns former player Erhan Onal's demise

By Can Erozden

ANKARA (AA) - Bayern Munich on Wednesday commemorated their former Turkish football player Erhan Onal.

"FC Bayern is mourning the loss of former player Erhan Onal, who has passed away at the age of 63 in his native Turkey," the German club said in a statement.

The Bayern Munich president said that their thoughts are with Onal’s family and expressed his sorrow.

"He will always be a part of this club and wrote a piece of German football history. We will honour his memory," Herbert Hainer said.

The club's CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said that Onal was a popular and beloved player at Bayern Munich.

"He’d always say, ‘I’m a Bavarian Turk.’ He was a fast midfielder and a very funny, extremely likeable person, whom we all liked very much. We’ll miss him and always remember him,” Rummenigge said.

Onal, who died on Tuesday, had played for Bayern Munich before his move to Belgium's Standard Liege in 1979.

Then he played for Turkish archrivals Fenerbahce and Galatasaray.

Separately Standard Liege tweeted to offer their condolences to the family and relatives of their former defender Onal.

Onal played for Galatasaray in 1985-1992 to win two Super Lig titles.