Hakan Sukur’s name has been erased from club and country records, and Turks are dissuaded from ever mentioning him — but some rebellious fans paid extra for him to get a special shoutout at tonight’s game:
Kevin V. Nguyen
When Turkey kicks off its must-win game against Paraguay in Santa Clara, its greatest-ever player will not be in the stands, but at home, up the road. Meet the remarkable Hakan Şükür, who has spent the last decade living in exile here in the Bay Area.
sfstandard.com/2026/06/19/h...
Hakan Şükür fled his country as its greatest player. Now he watches from the sidelines as his nation faces a must-win game in his adopted backyard.
