Ümit Davala

Ümit Davala — Biography

Ümit Davala is a right-sided player remembered for his mohawk at the 2002 World Cup, where Turkey finished third. He was born and raised in Germany but spent the best years of his career at Galatasaray. After retiring he moved into coaching, briefly into futsal and into rap music, and he is now known as a coach and football pundit.

He came up in the lower leagues of Mannheim, moved to Turkey in 1994 to join Afyonspor, and then helped İstanbulspor reach the top flight. Fatih Terim brought him to Galatasaray in 1996, where he won four league titles, three Turkish Cups and, in 2000, the UEFA Cup and UEFA Super Cup; in the UEFA Cup final against Arsenal he was among the penalty-takers. In 2001 he followed Terim to Milan, but lost his place once Terim was dismissed. He was sold to Inter yet loaned back to Galatasaray, and in 2003 a loan to Werder Bremen brought a Bundesliga and German Cup double. A hip injury ended his career in the middle of the 2005-06 season. He won 41 caps and scored 4 goals for Turkey; at the 2002 World Cup he scored against China, got the winner against Japan, and delivered the cross for İlhan Mansız's golden goal against Senegal.

He coached Turkey's under-21 side and worked as an assistant coach at Galatasaray. He is a holder of the Turkish State Medal of Distinguished Service.