Italian footballer Nicolo Zaniolo commemorates former teammate lost in 2023 earthquakes in Türkiye

By Metin Arslancan and Efe Ozkan

ISTANBUL (AA) - Italian footballer Nicolo Zaniolo said Friday that his new jersey will commemorate Muhammed Emin Ozkan, his onetime Turkish teammate who died in the devastating Feb. 6, 2023 earthquakes in southern Türkiye.

“I chose the number 17 jersey for a boy who lost his life in the earthquake in Türkiye. I promised it to his father,” the 25-year-old said when an Italian journalist asked why he picked that number for his jersey at his new team, Fiorentina.

The footballer transferred to Istanbul’s Galatasaray during the 2022-2023 season before joining Italian Serie A side Fiorentina this week on loan from the Turkish team.

Zaniolo said he met with Dogan Ozkan, the father of 17-year-old Muhammed Emin Ozkan, who lost his life in the earthquake, while Galatasaray was training in the Turkish resort city of Antalya.

The Italian footballer also wore the number 17 jersey while playing for the Istanbul team.

On social media, the Italian Embassy in Ankara also expressed gratitude for Zaniolo's commemorative gesture.

On Feb. 6, 2023, eleven Turkish provinces – Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Elazig, Hatay, Gaziantep, Kahramanmaras, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye, and Sanliurfa – were hit by 7.7 and 7.6 magnitude earthquakes.

The disaster killed more than 53,000 people, injured over 107,000 others, and impacted the lives of more than 14 million people.