Skibbe – ‘I tried to convince Nuri Sahin to play for Germany’ [divider]

Eskişehirspor manager Michael Skibbe admitted that he tried to convince Nuri Şahin to play for Germany when he was in charge of the German national youth setup in an interview with Al Jazeera.

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“I tried to convince a few players of Turkish origin to play for Germany, some did not accept, for example Nuri Şahin said he wants to represent Turkey and you have to respect these decisions,” Skibbe said.

The Turkish international made his debut for Borussia Dortmund aged just 16, becoming the youngest player to appear in the Bundesliga.

Şahin later joined Real Madrid amid high hopes when he signed for €8 million, in 2011. However, a string of unfortunate injuries had him sidelined for much of the season.

The 25-year-old joined Liverpool on loan from Real Madrid in the summer of 2013 after being in the centre of a transfer race between the Reds and Arsenal.

However, Şahin failed to settle in at Liverpool and didn’t fit into Brendan Rodgers plans.

Şahin left Liverpool with three goals and three assists in 12 games but only made seven Premier League appearances.

The Turkish international later returned to Dortmund.

Şahin has 44 international caps for Turkey since making his debut in October 2005.