Şükrü Gülesin

Şükrü Gülesin — Biography

Şükrü Mustafa Gülesin (14 September 1922, Istanbul - 10 July 1977, Istanbul) was a Turkish footballer, coach and sports journalist. Standing about 1.91 m, he was a powerful and quick centre-forward who was also known as a free-kick and penalty specialist.

Spotted while still at school, he joined Beşiktaş and became a central figure in the side that dominated the Istanbul championship through the 1930s and 1940s; German-language sources rank him as the club's fourth-highest scorer of all time. Of the 226 goals credited to him across his career, 32 were scored directly from corner kicks, a total that entered the Guinness Book of Records and earned him the nickname "master of the corner." He represented Turkey at the 1948 London Olympics, and a subsequent suspension pushed him towards a move abroad, where he played in Italy for Lazio and Palermo.

After retiring he settled in Rome as a correspondent for the newspaper Milliyet, coached İzmirspor and Karşıyaka, and in 1969 was briefly given charge of the Turkey national team. He died of heart failure on 10 July 1977; Beşiktaş officials and supporters still gather at his grave each year on the anniversary of his death.