Turkish midfielder quits playing football

By Emre Asikci

ISTANBUL (AA) - Turkish midfielder Nuri Sahin has quit playing football to focus on a managerial role at the age of 33, he confirmed Monday.

"Now it's time to put all into practice and combine my passion with the new realities of modern football. I want to express my gratitude to Fraport TAV Antalyaspor for making me at home from the first day and now giving me such an opportunity," Sahin said on Twitter.

Sahin has been appointed as head of football at Fraport TAV Antalyaspor.

"I grew up playing football and experienced every single emotion. And now here I am at the edge of such a precious moment that I wanted to share with you all. I start a new chapter as Head of Football," he added.

The German-born Turkish player is a Borussia Dortmund product and veteran, spending the majority of his career at the Bundesliga club.

Sahin was a Real Madrid midfielder in the 2011-12 season and also played for Werder Bremen, Feyenoord and Liverpool.

In 2011, he helped Dortmund win the German Bundesliga title and bagged the 2012 La Liga title with Real Madrid.

In his football career, Sahin also scored two goals in 52 matches for the Turkish national team.

Separately, he was admitted to Harvard Business School for sports management in 2018 while playing for Dortmund.

He completed the program in the same year.

Sahin had taken a player/coach role at Antalyaspor on Oct. 7.