get to know… Nuri Sahin

Just like they did with all the signings last season, Marca made it their business to line up outside Nuri Sahin’s door, so that they could be the first ones to interview him since his signing with Real Madrid.  It’s a pretty great interview, and judging by his answers to the questions, I think Nuri will fit in perfectly at Madrid.  And I bet you’ll be surprised at what his mobile ringtone is!

on signing for Madrid: signing for Madrid is not something that happens every day!  When the agreement was finalized, you can imagine how it was.  I was thinking to myself, “Real Madrid player, Real Madrid player…”  It wasn’t a hard decision, because it’s the biggest club in the world.  If Madrid calls you, you go to Madrid.  You can’t say no to Madrid.

on his relationship with Mesut Özil: he’s my friend and I’m sure he’ll help me out a lot in my adaptation.  We speak every two to three days because we have a great relationship, so you can imagine what it means for me to be able to play with him in Madrid.  He’s told me that this is a special club, the biggest one you can be in.  He’s enjoys playing football there and he’s improving as a player.  He’s very happy with my signing.

on what he knows about the city of Madrid: I understand that the people are very nice and the fans are affectionate.  But the most important thing is the club, because you won’t see me much in the city.  I live for football 24 hours a day.  I don’t usually go out.  I’m married and I have a very tranquil and orderly life.

on the Bernabéu: I played there with the Turkish national team and it’s marvelous.  When you go out there and you look up… ¡Buf!  I always wanted to play there and I remember that when I did, I realized one of my dreams.  We lost the game, but I felt something special.  It’s a beautiful stadium with a great history.

on his language skills: I speak Turkish, German, English and Dutch.  I think it’s important to understand the customs and culture of the places where you are, so I’ve always worked hard to learn languages.  I will learn Spanish quickly.

on his jersey number: I don’t care about that, whatever they give me will be fine.  I’m not the type of player who cares about those kinds of things.  I focus on the game, not the things around it.

And the personal test.

A car: Audi S5.  It’s the one I have, the best one I’ve ever had and one that I never imagined I would own [well, now he can get one for free!].

A color: white.

A city: Istanbul.

A vacation spot: Antalya (Turkey).

A stadium: the Santiago Bernabéu and that of Borussia Dortmund, of course.

A movie: any that stars Denzel Washington, the best actor.

A book: The Alchemist.

A hobby: spending time with my family and playing Play.

A dream: to realize the dream of Real Madrid, which is to win the Champions.

A desire: health for my entire family.

You love… eating and sleeping.

You hate… lies.

Your ringtone:  the Champions League hymn.  In September, I’ll hear it on the field.

A woman’s name: Tugba, my wife’s name.

And here is a video of Sahin meeting his idol Cristiano back in 2008.  Take care, my friend.