The Day Ahmet Dursun Hijacked Sergen’s Free-Kick

There are Turkish football myths, and then there are Turkish football myths involving Sergen Yalçın standing over a free-kick looking like he’s just remembered where he parked his car.

For years, one of the great terrace tales floating around Beşiktaş circles was that Sergen once looked at Ahmet Dursun before a free-kick and casually said: “You take it,” as if passing someone the TV remote. The story grew legs. Then wings. Eventually it became one of those exaggerated Turkish football campfire stories repeated with absolute confidence by people who were nowhere near the stadium.

According to Ahmet himself, though, the truth was much less cinematic and much funnier.

At Beşiktaş training, the routine was simple. Tümer Metin usually placed the ball. Sergen usually took the free-kicks. Everybody knew the hierarchy. Nobody argued. Especially not the strikers.

Then one day Ahmet wandered over with the confidence only a streaky centre-forward can possess.

“What are you going to do abi?” he asked Sergen.

“I’m taking it,” came the reply.

But Ahmet insisted. “I’ve got a feeling.”

Sergen looked at him the way older Turkish footballers look at younger teammates who clearly won’t stop talking until they get what they want. Eventually he stepped aside.

Ahmet hit it, straight into the wall.

That was it. No magical “you take it kid” movie moment. No wise football prophecy from Sergen. Just Ahmet Dursun operating entirely on instinct, convincing a reluctant Sergen to let him shoot, and immediately rediscovering why Sergen normally took the free-kicks in the first place.

Peak early-2000s Beşiktaş, really.