BABEL: GALATASARAY CAREER HONOURS REVIEWED

Dutch forward Ryan Babel signed a three-year deal with Turkish Super League giants Galatasaray when he joined in 2019. He signed for Galatasaray as a free agent having been part of the Fulham team that suffered relegation from the English top flight at the end of the 2018/19 campaign.


Ryan Babel returned to Ajax Amsterdam as a Galatasaray loanee at the start of last year. The ex-TSG Hoffenheim and Liverpool player joined Dutch Eredivisie champions Ajax Amsterdam on loanfrom Galatasaray on January 9, 2020 until the end of the 2019/20 campaign. Ryan Babel returned to Ajax Amsterdam for his third spell at the club and it lasted for six months before he moved back to parent club Galatasaray.

In his time at Galatasaray, Babel has one trophy to show till date. The Dutchman was part of the Galatasaray team that won the 2019 Turkish Super Cup.

The 2019 Turkish Super Cup was played between double winners Galatasaray and Turkish Cup runners-up Akhisarspor. Ryan Babel had not joined Galatasaray when the club won both the 2018/19 Turkish Super League title and the 2018/19 Turkish Cup title.

Galatasaray won the 2019 Turkish Super Cup thanks to the slim win over Akhisarspor thanks to the first half strike from Moroccan international star Younes Belhanda. The ex-Montpellier player scored the only goal of the game six minutes from the end of the first half. Ryan Babel was part of a three-man Galatasaray attack during the game alongside the abovementioned Belhanda and Adem Buyuk. Babel started and finished the game as a centre forward.

At the end of the game, Moroccan attacker Belhanda was given the best player award as reward for netting the decisive goal that led to the destination of the Turkish Super Cup title.

Galatasaray have not won any major trophy since that Turkish Super Cup title.

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