Orkun Kokcu #6

Profile

Kokcu made the surprise move from Benfica to Besiktas this summer, saying: "Finally, I am playing for the team of my childhood dreams." And he has excelled in Istanbul. The midfield dynamo is one of the unsung heroes of his team: a lot of what he brings to the table goes unnoticed but he puts in a lot of hard work and keeps things ticking over. Like Kadioglu he was born in the Netherlands and, like Kadioglu, expect him to make a big impact in North America. Things did not go according to plan at Benfica after a £26m move from Feyenoord in 2023 and it all came to a head with an almighty fallout with the coach, Bruno Lage, at the Club World Cup in 2025. Benfica were winning 2-0 against Auckland when Lage took off the No 10, which led to a row between the two and ended with the manager shushing his own player.

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