“I am ready to pay the price for what I have done in my life and I will. I am doing what is necessary and I am ending my national team career,” said Turan, 30, in Slovenia, where the Turkish National Football Team had been preparing for a World Cup qualifier.<\/p>\n
“Do I feel sorry? No, I don’t. I am at ease. If you do something [wrong] in your life, you will pay the price. I made a mistake,” he added.<\/p>\n
Turan’s announcement followed his assault on Turkish sports journalist Bilal Mese on the plane returning from a national team match in Macedonia on Monday night.<\/p>\n
Several Turkish journalists left the hall when Turan entered to make his announcement.<\/p>\n
The Turkish star added that he was trying to be a good and honorable man rather than a good player and thanked the public, his teammates, and family for their support.<\/p>\n
After beginning his career with Turkish Super Lig giants Galatasaray, Turan moved to Barcelona in July 2015.<\/p>\n
Barca signed him from Spanish club Atletico Madrid for \u20ac34 million ($38.3 million), making him Turkey\u2019s most valuable player of all time.<\/p>\n
Turan debuted in Turkey in 2006 while he was 19 years old.<\/p>\n
Considered a key player for Turkey, Turan scored 16 goals and produced 25 assists in 97 matches for his country.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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