Yusuf Soysal

Yusuf Soysal — Biography

Yusuf Soysal (born 26 April 1982 in Frankfurt) is a retired Turkish goalkeeper. He earned a single cap for Turkey's under-16 side in a match against Qatar on 27 August 1998.

He began his professional career at Gençlerbirliği (1998-2000) before moving on to Hacettepe (2001-2002), Uşakspor (2002-2004) and Eskişehirspor (2004-2005), joining Kayseri Erciyesspor in 2005. Initially a backup keeper there, he was part of the squad that reached the Turkish Cup final in the 2006-07 season, drawing attention for his performance against Maccabi Tel Aviv in the UEFA Cup and for a string of strong saves even in a heavy defeat to Atlético Madrid.

Soysal stayed with Kayseri Erciyesspor through relegation to the first division before a falling-out with the club's management at the end of the season. Although he had agreed to join MKE Ankaragücü ahead of the 2008-09 season, he instead transferred to Kayserispor after the opening week, going on to become a fan favorite in Kayseri thanks to his performances and likeable personality.