Selahattin Torkal

Selahattin Torkal — Biography

Selahattin Torkal was born on 15 November 1924 in Istanbul and began his football career in the youth ranks of Ankara Demirspor. His performances there led to a transfer to Fenerbahçe in 1944, where he went on to make 208 appearances over eight seasons, helping the club win two Istanbul League titles, three National Division championships and three Prime Minister's Cups. In 1952 he moved to Adalet, then newly promoted to the Istanbul First League.

Torkal earned his first national team cap in 1948, in a match against Greece that ended an eleven-year gap for Turkey, and represented his country at the 1948 London Olympics and at the 1949 Mediterranean Cup in Athens, where the Turkish team finished as runners-up. He collected nine caps in total before moving into coaching, taking charge of Beylerbeyi ahead of the 1965-66 season.

Remembered as one of the most enduring figures in Fenerbahçe's history for his long service to the club as both player and official, Torkal died in his native Istanbul on 16 November 2010.