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"Baba" Gündüz Kılıç
Personal information
Date of birth	29 October 1918
Place of birth	Istanbul, Ottoman Empire
Date of death	17 May 1980 (aged 61)
Place of death	New York City, United States
Position(s)	Forward
Senior career*
Years	Team
1934–1945	Galatasaray SK
1945–1946	Ankara Demirspor
1946–1953	Galatasaray SK
Total
International career
1936–1951	Turkey
Managerial career
1952–1953	Galatasaray SK
1953–1954	Vefa S.K.
1954	Turkey
1954–1957	Galatasaray SK
1959–1960	Feriköy SK
1960–1967	Galatasaray SK
1968–1969	Altay SK
1971–1972	Beşiktaş J.K.
	*Club domestic league appearances and goals

"Baba" Gündüz Kılıç (29 October 1918 – 17 May 1980) was a Turkish football player and coach. He was Ali Kılıç's son and Altemur Kılıç's brother.^[1]

Biography

Born in 1918 in Istanbul, Gündüz Kılıç attended Galatasaray Lycee and then started his football career as a center forward with Galatasaray SK. He was strong, big, well-educated, sophisticated, charismatic, charming and hungry for success. He never looked flashy, yet was never boring. Kılıç was the mastermind behind the rise of Turkish football schooling football players that would become respectable managers after their career. He was also part of Turkey's squad at the 1936 Summer Olympics, but he did not play in any matches.^[2]

He took a break from his career in 1938, moving to Germany for a university education.^[3] When he returned to Turkey, he again wore the Galatasaray shirt and won two league championships with the team. Kılıç, who played 11 matches with the Turkey national football team, played for Galatasaray until 1953 except he played for Ankara Demirspor during his national service military obligation. His 5 goals against Beşiktaş JK are still a record for all 3 Istanbul derbies. His 5 goals were scored in the 43' (1-1), 58' (4-1), 73' (5-2), 76' (6-2) and 89' (9-2) minute.

The "Gündüz Kılıç Revolution" started early one morning at Galatasaray in 1952, when he hung his uniform in his locker and put on his coaching suit and whistle without looking back. Once the captain of the Galatasaray team, Gündüz Kılıç coached his former teammates and the bright young talents he added to the squad. He led his team to several championships after eighteen years without a championship between 1934 and 1952. He also transferred Turkish superstar Metin Oktay to the team.

Under Kılıç, Galatasaray reached quarter-finals of the European Cup, with the AC Milan side of Nereo Rocco ending their run.

Every Galatasaray player, student or supporter had found an exemplary man in Gündüz Kılıç: a man who performed so well, motivated so well, educates so well and brought out the very best in every single person he ever worked with. A true gentleman both on and off the field, Gündüz Kılıç helped Galatasaray to reach new targets. Under his leadership, Galatasaray won numerous championships, Turkish Cup titles and international matches.

His visionary coaching style and strong communication skills were to be the backbone of Turkish coaching for many years to come.

The player, whose nickname was "Father", died in New York City, USA on 17 May 1980. His body was transferred to Istanbul and was interred at the Aşiyan Asri Cemetery.^[4]

Honours

As player

Galatasaray
- Milli Küme: 1
  - 1938-1939
- Istanbul Football League: 1
  - 1948-1949
- Istanbul Futbol Kupası: 2
  - 1941-1942, 1942–1943

As manager

Galatasaray
- Istanbul Football League: 2
  - 1954-1955, 1955–1956
- Süper Lig: 2
  - 1961-1962, 1962–1963
- Turkish Cup: 3
  - 1962-1963, 1964–1965, 1965–1966
- TFF Süper Kupa: 1
  - 1966

References

^ "Gündüz Kılıç - Biyografya". Archived from the original on 26 March 2019.
^ "Gündüz Kılıç". Olympedia. Retrieved 26 September 2021.
^ "Unforgettables". Galatasaray.org. Retrieved 4 July 2010.
^ "Gündüz Kılıç'ı andık". Hürriyet Spor (in Turkish). 18 May 1998. Retrieved 27 October 2011.

External links

Gündüz Kılıç – FIFA competition record (archived)
Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Gündüz Kılıç". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020.