Ergün Penbe

Ergün Penbe (born 17 May 1972), known by his nickname Kemik –literally meaning the Bone–, is a Turkish former professional footballer who played mostly as a left midfielder and left back, and is currently the manager of Yeni Mersin İdmanyurdu.

He is known for his "fair play" approach to the game, having gone through two seasons of football without a single booking. He also received the nickname Kemik (the bone), because of his calmness and ability to hold the team together. He spent most of his professional career with Galatasaray, winning a total of 12 titles. He wore number 67 during his career in honor of the identifying vehicle plate code number of his hometown, Zonguldak.

Club career Born in Zonguldak, Black Sea, Ergün begun his professional career with Gençlerbirliği SK. After that, in the 1994 summer, he signed with top division giants Galatasaray SK, being one of the team's most influential players in the following decade (in a variety of positions, including left back), and playing a very important part in the side's exploits from 1999–2001, which brought a total of six titles – two domestic doubles, the UEFA Cup and the UEFA Super Cup; in the first competition's final, he scored in the penalty shootout win against Arsenal.

On 27 August 2007, 35-year-old Ergün signed a 1+1 year contract with Gaziantepspor. He made his debut for his new team on 31 October in a Turkish Cup clash against Fenerbahçe. After helping the side finish eighth in the league, with the player appearing in exactly half of the games, he decided to retire at the age of 36.

Immediately after retiring, Ergün was appointed as assistant manager of lowly Hacettepe Spor Kulübü on 5 November 2008. After Erdoğan Arıca's resignation he was promoted to head coach, but could not prevent the club from being relegated to the second division.

On 12 February 2010, Ergün signed with Mersin Idman Yurdu in that same category, until the end of the season.

International career Ergün represented Turkey on 48 occasions, all of his caps coming whilst he was at Galatasaray, in a 12-year span.

He was part of the nation's final squads at UEFA Euro 2000 and the 2002 FIFA World Cup, playing in three matches in the former competition and five in the latter, as it respectively reached the quarterfinals and finished in third place.

Managerial career On October 1, 2024, he reached an agreement with Yeni Mersin İdmanyurdu, TFF 2. Lig team, until the end of the 2024-25 season.

Career statistics

Club

International

Managerial statistics

Honours Galatasaray Turkish League: 1996–97, 1997–98, 1998–99, 1999–2000, 2001–02, 2005–06 Turkish Cup: 1995–96, 1998–99, 1999–2000, 2004–05 UEFA Cup: 1999–2000 UEFA Super Cup: 2000

Turkey FIFA World Cup: third place 2002 FIFA Confederations Cup: third place 2003

Order Turkish State Medal of Distinguished Service