Turkey: Hakan Sukur
There is no stage finer for a player with a point to prove than the World Cup, and Turkey’s Hakan Sukur will be eyeing the finals as an opportunity to establish himself in a principle role.
The Inter Milan striker is a superstar in his native land after his goals inspired Galatasaray to become the first Turkish club to win a European trophy in the 2000 UEFA Cup.
And his importance to his country was underlined in the play-off which sent to Turkey to the Far East.
The 30-year-old scored one stunning goal and made two others as Senol Gunes’s team destroyed Austria 5-0.
But the man from Sakarya has struggled to make an impact during his two sojourns in Italy.
Currently employed at the San Siro, Sukur is in his second spell in Serie A following an unhappy six-month stay at Torino in 1995.
Italy’s top-flight is an unforgiving arena that has seen strikers of the quality of Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp and Patrick Kluivert struggle to shake off the shackles of ‘catenaccio’.
Sukur arrived in Turin after three profitable years with Galatasaray which began with him scoring 19 goals and winning his first league medal.
A string of international performances which eventually led to Turkey qualifying for the European Championships for the first time in 1996, established him as a feared marksman.
But his reputation counted for little with ‘La Granata’ and, after just five games in which he scored just one goal, Galatasaray admitted their prodigal back.
After licking his wounded pride by the banks of the Bosphorous, he surged back to form and netted 38 goals in his first full season for the Cim Bom.
Under the guidance of Fatih Terim and with Brazilian scoring sensation Jardel alongside him and veteran Romanian schemer Gheorghe Hagi prompting from midfield, Hakan starred in Turkish football’s finest moment.
Little-fancied in the build-up the their 2000 UEFA Cup final against Arsenal, Galatasaray out-passed and outplayed the Londoners to become the first Turkish club to claim a European trophy.
His club performances once again caught the eye of Italian scouts with Inter Milan plumping for his services the summer after that historic night in Copenhagen.
But the Turk could soon find himself pushed to the margins at the San Siro with the return to fitness of Christian Vieri and Ronaldo.
Vieri, in particular, has been in explosive form.
Ronaldo, who has lost the best part of two years to injury, made a more cautious return to action.
But, as the duo cost the Moratti family a hefty chunk of their fortune, it seems likely that Sukur could soon find himself on the outside looking in.
The World Cup, though, hands him a script which could see him enjoy a curtain call or two.
Turkey will be appearing at the World Cup for the first time since 1954, but the draw has been kind and a place in the quarter-finals is certainly not beyond them.
Costa Rica, China and a debilitated Brazil stand in their path to the second round where one from Japan, Belgium, Russia and Tunisia wait in the wings.
The limelight is burning, the supporting cast are in place and an adoring public back home are willing Sukur back to centre stage.
