Saturday, February 20, 2016

Michael Klukowski looks back on his time at Ankaragucu!




Our former Left Back Michael Klukowski was kind enough to agree to a small interview with The Round Ball in Ankara during the week on his time at Ankaragucu. The former Canadian international had a successful spell at the club back in 2010/11 season playing 23 games scoring 1 goal.

Ankaragucu signed Klukowski from Club Brugge where he spent the longest spell of his career and although he looks back fondly of his time in Turkey, the off field problems led to his early exit from the club.

First question, Ronaldo or Messi? I like both players, 2 very different players but if i had to chose one then i would go for Ronaldo.

Which team did you grow up supporting as a kid? Manchester United, Loved the generation with Scholes, Giggs, Cantona, Cole, really miss that team!

How did you enjoy your time at Ankaragucu? It was a good experience and a new step in my career after 9 years in Belgium. Unfortunately there were some serious issues with the management. Being at a new club i never really knew what was going on, but afterwards i understood the real problem (politics). Its a shame because i would have loved to have spent more time in Ankara. We had a good team, fantastic fanbase and probably one of the best training facilities in Europe. I must also say myself and family really enjoyed the lifestyle in Turkey, we often comeback to visit.

What did you think of the Ankaragucu fans? The fans are great, and thats probably one of the reasons the club is still alive even though they are going through some tough times.

Who was the best player you played with at Ankaragucu? Good question, very difficult to choose one to be fair. Marek Sapara, Stanislaw Sestak and Michael Zewlakow were all great players.

What was your most memorable moment at the club? My most memorable moment was my first game for the club versus Manisaspor. I had just arrived in Ankara, trained with the team once and then played the next day. We won 3-0 away from home. I also remember smashing Fenerbahce and Galatasaray a few times.

What do you think of the clubs current circumstances? I still follow Ankaragucu closely and to be fair the financial situation they are in since they were relegated could be worse. In any other country the club would have been bankrupt. I hope they can win promotion this season.

Now that you have retired, what's next in your career? I finished playing 2 years ago and now I'm based in Warsaw in Poland. I'm really happy that i am still in football although not on the pitch, don't need to run up and down the pitch anymore haha.

We would like to thank Michael for his time and taking part in this interview. Its great to hear he still keeps up to date with the club and actually follows this blog. We wish him all the best with his future.

5 comments:

  1. Those were the days. I went to quite a few Ankaragucu matches when Klukowski and Sestek were playing. Things were so different then. Good luck in Poland Michael!

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  2. Echo Oz Kanka's comments.

    Perhaps when and if Ankaragucu return to normal we can do some business with Michael !!!

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  3. ''I also remember smashing Fenerbahce and Galatasaray a few times '' loved it.Thanx Klukowski....

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  4. If he played for our team under another administration (instead of Ahmet G.) we might remembered him as like as Leo Iglesias who also follows Ankaragucu from overseas.

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    1. Thank you for everything that you did for us Michael!

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