Özgür İleri

Özgür İleri — Biography

Özgür İleri is a former midfielder who climbed from the Turkish third tier to the Süper Lig. The most visible stretch of his career was his time in the top flight with Gençlerbirliği.

He began in the Metaspor academy in 2001, moved to the youth setup of Çanakkale Dardanelspor and was promoted to the first team on a professional contract in 2006. His first official match for Dardanelspor came on August 30, 2006, against Kasımpaşa in the Turkish Cup. As he earned more playing time, he won the 2008-09 second-division play-offs with the club and went up to the 1. Lig. Dardanelspor dropped back to the 2. Lig after one season and to the 3. Lig in 2010-11, when his contract ran out. At the start of 2011-12 he joined Gençlerbirliği; he debuted against Kardemir Karabükspor, scored his first goal against Bursaspor and played 23 league and cup matches in his first season. In 2012-13 he started more often and faced the likes of Galatasaray and Fenerbahçe in the Süper Lig. He wore number 24 because he was 24 when he arrived.

After Gençlerbirliği he signed for Göztepe in 2015 and for Bodrumspor in July 2018, and in the later part of his career he also played as a midfielder for Pendikspor.