Dirk Kuyt's confession about İsmail Kartal!

Dirk Kuyt, assistant coach to head coach İsmail Kartal at Fenerbahçe, spoke to FBTV.

Kuyt’s comments were as follows:

“I was very happy when I heard that our club was interested in me for a different role—that is, as a coach. Because even when I left here, I knew this wasn’t a farewell; I left saying, ‘We’ll see each other again.’ I told our President exactly that at the time. I think this is a very special situation. I believe it’s very special to be working with the same president here—both as a player and as a coach. When I received that call from our president and he told me the club was considering me for a different role, I felt very proud. I’m also very happy and proud to have taken on this role. I want to help the team. I want to help this wonderful club achieve success. Because even though it’s been many years, I’m still very happy to be a part of this team.

'I’M VERY HAPPY TO BE WORKING WITH ISMAIL KARTAL AGAIN'

First of all, I have to say that I’m very happy to be reunited with Coach İsmail. I worked with him during my playing days, and to be honest, I had a lot of respect for him even back then. The respect he has shown me makes me very proud. We have a great rapport. When I compare my acting days to now, it feels as if everything is the same—I have the same feelings, and even though a lot of time has passed, my feelings from back then are exactly the same as they are now! It’s a wonderful feeling to be working with him again. It’s not just working with him—it’s the same with his staff as well. Because Coach İsmail is, first and foremost, a very hardworking person, but it’s not just him; everyone on his staff is very hardworking. I’m very happy to be a part of this team. We’re really working very hard. We have double training sessions every day. We’re also playing three preseason matches during the camp. So seeing how he manages this entire process really inspires great respect in me. Ultimately, everyone on the coaching staff has a specific role to ensure the camp goes as smoothly as possible. As you can see from the outside, the energy is great. We’re working very hard so the team can reach the form it needs at the start of the season.

'WE WANT EVERYONE TO BE READY; WE’RE WORKING HARD'

Under Coach İsmail’s leadership, the entire coaching staff is working very hard. It’s important for us to give the young players a chance to prove themselves. At the same time, we need to prepare the team for our first Champions League Qualifying matches, and we have players who have been actively participating in matches and training sessions during the World Cup. Therefore, we need to manage the physical demands on the players as effectively as possible. We need to tailor the physical workload to each player’s specific needs. The smallest details are crucial for us to plan this correctly. We want everyone to be ready. I’m very happy to be part of this coaching staff. It’s not just the coaching staff—we have our medical team and our athletic performance team. We’re all working very hard together. Coach İsmail is assigning roles to everyone in this regard. As you can see, that’s exactly what’s happening. I also have to say that there’s a very high level of energy not just among the players, but also among the staff and the coaching staff. Everyone is doing their very best to prepare and support the team in the best possible way.

'ISMAIL KARTAL’S PHILOSOPHY: A PLAYING PHILOSOPHY SUITED TO FENERBAHÇE'

We’re very happy with the team’s progress. Everyone is familiar with Coach İsmail’s playing style and philosophy. The ideas he wants to implement are very clear, and this playing philosophy is exactly the right fit for Fenerbahçe! Seeing the effects of this on the field is truly wonderful for us. We’ve played two preseason matches, and I can say we performed well for the majority of those games, but we want to be perfect. To achieve that, there’s still a lot we need to do. We need to work very hard. Training sessions are crucial in this regard. We want to help the players every day. The players also need to feel that ‘success will come this way.’ If you look at the match we played the other day, we played a dominant game in the first 35 minutes. We scored two goals, but we could have scored more. However, we want to control the entire match—to dominate it for the full 90 minutes. That’s why we’re working very hard every day. Yes, we’ve had good results in the preseason matches, but we want to improve much more. There’s still a lot we need to work on. We want to improve even more and be more successful. Coach İsmail is making this message very clear. We’re doing our best to support him. I can say we’re heading in the right direction.

TO SKRINIAR AND OĞUZ AYDIN: ‘YOU HAVE A WONDERFUL LIFE’

“This morning, I told Oğuz and Milan: ‘You have a wonderful life. Enjoy every minute of it. Actually, this is the best life; you have great conditions—we’re training at a nice hotel, on a good field, and we have excellent facilities—and in that sense, a soccer player’s life is the best.’ But as coaches, we have to get up very early in the morning to prepare. Even if some players have the day off, another group is training, so we have to be constantly working. Of course, I never complain about this situation. I’m very happy and grateful to be part of the Fenerbahçe Family, and I’ll do my very best to make this team successful because that’s what our fans—and all of us—want.

Every soccer player has a certain level of game knowledge, but being a coach is something completely different. I’ve been on this path for about 5–6 years now. I’m very happy, and I’ve worked hard to succeed in coaching as well. Right now, I’m also very happy to be working with such an experienced head coach and staff. Yes, soccer is still soccer, but your role is different, and you have to work very hard. I’m trying to do my very best to demonstrate that. As for my coaching career, I can say that I’m still learning, and I’ll continue to learn until the very end of my career.

'WE’LL HAVE THINGS TO CELEBRATE TOGETHER'

First of all, I’d like to thank the fans very much for their support. Fifteen thousand of our fans came to our Topuk Yaylası facilities during our first training camp. It was truly amazing! Similarly, the stands were packed during the two preseason matches we played, and they supported us. I believe this will continue throughout the season. I think the same positive energy we’ve built within the team will also be present among our fans. When we achieve that, we become an unbeatable team. I also need to say this: we need our fans at every game. Together, we can achieve and celebrate great things, and we can do this all together. Once we make that happen, we’ll have plenty to celebrate together.”