Ertuğrul Sağlam

Ertuğrul Sağlam (born 19 November 1969) is a UEFA Pro Licensed Turkish football manager and former player who last coached Kocaelispor.

He spent nine years playing for Samsunspor during two spells, and helped the club to promotion to the Turkish top flight in 1991 and again in 1993 after relegation.

He also played for Beşiktaş between 1994 and 2000.

When he signed from Samsunspor to Beşiktaş in 1994, he was the most expensive signing in Turkish football, when Beşiktaş paid 70 Billion TRY, equivalent to around 3 Million $, at the time.

For the time being, that amount of money was unprecedented in Turkish Football history.

He played as an offensive midfielder and as a striker before joining Beşiktaş.

A few years later, the then Beşiktaş coach John Benjamin Toshack used Sağlam as a central defender.

He was quite successful in that position, too.

During his six years at Beşiktaş, he scored 103 goals in 167 games.

After he was traded in exchange with defender Erman Güraçar from Samsunspor, he could not stop his tears at the airport.

After first helping Samsunspor to promotion to the Süper Lig during his first spell as a player with the club, he took over the reins of manager at the end of three years as a player during his second spell at the club.

He signed a two-year managerial contract.

His first ever game as a manager saw Samsunspor lose 1–3 at home to Beşiktaş, and saw them win only two of their first 10 games, suffering a heavy 5–0 defeat to Malatyaspor.

As a player, he scored 11 goals in 30 appearances for Turkey, and was selected for the Euro 1996 squad.

He began his career playing for Fenerbahçe Youth but never played a professional game with the club and signed for Gaziantepspor.

However, by November 2003, Samsunspor's form rapidly improved and they impressively won against all of the "Istanbul big three", recording an impressive 0–4 away win at Beşiktaş, a 3–0 home win against Fenerbahçe, and 1–0 at home to Galatasaray.

At the end of the 2003–04 season, they finished 7th in the table.

Kayserispor were promoted to the Turkish to flight at the beginning of the 2004–05 season.

It was their first season in the Süper Lig.

The following season, 2004–05, was less successful and they finished in 12th position.

Kayserispor were promoted to the Turkish to flight at the beginning of the 2004–05 season.

It was their first season in the Süper Lig.

Sağlam was manager of Kayserispor for two seasons from the July 2005 to May 2007.

Sağlam was manager of Kayserispor for two seasons from the July 2005 to May 2007.

They appointed Sağlam as their manager after finishing just two places above the relegation zone at the end of 2005.

In the 2005–06 season, Sağlam's first in charge and Kayseri's second in the Süper Lig, he guided them to 5th place in the table with 51 points.

As well as beating Fenerbahçe 1–0, Kayseri recorded astounding victories, in beating Manisaspor 7–2 at home and a 5–0 away win against Sivasspor.

Sağlam also the pleasure of defeating Samsunspor, the club he used to play for and previously managed, 6–3.

In 2006, Sağlam was voted one of the top 20 most promising coaches by respected football magazine Champions.

In 2006, he won the now defunct Intertoto Cup, with Kayserispor of Turkey.

He has previously managed two of the clubs he had played for, those being Samsunspor and Beşiktaş.

In July 2007 Sağlam became the manager of Turkish giants Beşiktaş.

He guided them to a third-place finish in the League in the 2007–08 season, with a joint number of points with second placed Fenerbahçe with 73 points, six behind champions Galatasaray.

It was manager Sağlam's first full season in charge having taken over in January 2009, and it is the first time he, and Bursaspor, won the league.

After first helping Samsunspor to promotion to the Süper Lig during his first spell as a player with the club, he took over the reins of manager at the end of three years as a player during his second spell at the club.

He signed a two-year managerial contract.

His first ever game as a manager saw Samsunspor lose 1–3 at home to Beşiktaş, and saw them win only two of their first 10 games, suffering a heavy 5–0 defeat to Malatyaspor.

On 16 May 2010, Bursaspor won the Super Lig after beating defending champions Beşiktaş 2–1 at home.

They won the league by just one point above second placed Fenerbahçe, although they had an 11-point gap over third placed Galatasaray.

Bursaspor had the strongest strikeforce and the second strongest defence, of all teams in the league.