Kennedy Bakırcıoğlu

Club career Assyriska Bakircioglu started his professional career with Assyriska, making his senior debut in 1996 at age 15. He would soon establish himself as a regular starter in Division 1, by then in the Swedish second tier, despite his young age.

Hammarby Before the start of 1999, Bakircioglu transferred to Hammarby in Allsvenskan. He scored his first competitive goal for the Stockholm-based side on 1 July the same year, in a 3–0 home win against IFK Norrköping. He quickly became a fan favourite at his new club, and ended the season playing 25 league matches, scoring twice. In the away leg, he scored a brace to help to a 2–2 draw and subsequent qualification. He made 26 league appearances and netted five times, but the side finished eighth.

In 2001, Bakircioglu scored eight goals in 26 games to lead the team to their first-ever national championship. He also provided seven assists throughout the domestic tournament, and was praised by pundits as player of the season at Hammarby. He scored in the title-deciding fixture against Örgryte IS on 21 October, a 3–2 home win.

Bakircioglu continued 2002 in similar fashion, and netted 11 goals from 26 appearances. As reigning Swedish champions, they took part in the second qualifying round of the UEFA Champions League where they faced the Serbian SuperLiga's Partizan, with the player being featured in both legs of the 5–1 aggregate loss. He reportedly attracted interest from Beşiktaş from Turkey during the season, but the deal fell through in the last minute.

In the 2003 campaign, Bakircioglu scored six goals in the league's first seven rounds – in an eventual total of 12 In September, the club's board of directors suspended both him and Mikael Andersson because the parties could not agree to extend their outgoing contracts. The decision was, however, revoked after only a few days, roughly at the same time as the team was surpassed by city rivals Djurgårdens at the top of table and eventually finished second.

Bakircioglu left on a free transfer at the end of the year. A year after his departure, he was voted the club's fourth greatest player of all time.

Iraklis On 12 January 2004, Bakircioglu moved to the Super League Greece with Iraklis. He signed a two-and-a-half-year contract, linking up with compatriot Mats Jingblad who held the managerial position at his new club.

Ajax On 5 May 2007, newspaper De Telegraaf announced that Bakircioglu had reached an agreement with fellow league club Ajax. He was officially signed ten days later,

In August 2008, new manager Marco van Basten deemed Bakircioglu surplus to requirements, but the latter decided to stay, being restricted to only 17 league games over two seasons. He did manage, however, a crucial goal for the Amsterdam team, in the 2008–09 UEFA Cup, in a 1–0 away win against Fiorentina in the round of 32 (2–1 aggregate victory).

Racing Santander Bakircioglu left Ajax in June 2010, signing for Spain's Racing de Santander early in the following month. He started in all but two matches he appeared in his first season, as the Cantabrians retained their La Liga status. Three of his league goals came in the last month of competition, against Mallorca (2–0 home win), Atlético Madrid (2–1, home) and Athletic Bilbao (1–2 loss also at the Campos de Sport de El Sardinero).

Bakircioglu spent the vast majority of 2011–12 nursing an achilles tendon injury, and Racing would also return to Segunda División after one full decade in the top flight.

Return to Hammarby At the end of August 2012, Bakircioglu returned to Hammarby, now in the Superettan. On 23 June 2013, they faced Ängelholms FF in the last football game at the Söderstadion, which had been the club's home ground since 1967; the game ended 1–1, with his team securing a late draw when he scored from a free kick.

Bakircioglu led all scorers with 17 goals and contributed seven decisive passes in the 2014 campaign, helping to a return to the top division whilst also acting as captain. A regular in both 2015 and 2016, with the team finishing eleventh on both occasions, the 36-year-old signed a new one-year contract in December 2016.

In his later years, Bakircioglu repositioned himself as a central midfielder, dictating the game as a playmaker. He agreed to a new one-year deal on 22 October 2017, and simultaneously announced that he would retire from football when it expired. On 1 October 2018, at the end of his last season, he scored from a spectacular free kick to make it 3–0 in the league fixture against IFK Göteborg, and proceeded to celebrate the goal in front of the home fans by catching and drinking from a cup of beer that was thrown towards him from the stands.

International career Bakircioglu made over 40 appearances for Sweden at under-17, under-19 and under-21 levels, before making his full debut on 20 November 2003 in a friendly against the Czech Republic.

Career statistics Club

International

Honours Hammarby Allsvenskan: 2001 Superettan: 2014

Ajax KNVB Cup: 2009–10 Johan Cruyff Shield: 2007

Individual Allsvenskan Newcomer of the Year: 1999 Superettan top scorer: 2014