Sometimes humorous, sometimes profound, but always personal. Nati coach Murat Yakin reveals what he loves about getting older, what he always wanted as a child and never got and when he last cried.
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- Happy Birthday Murat Yakin. blue Sport wishes our national team coach a happy 50th birthday.
- Before Yakin celebrates his 50th birthday this Sunday with his family and closest friends, we asked him 50 personal questions.
- Questions like: Do you struggle with the number 50? What is at the top of your bucket list? When was the last time you cried? What did you not have enough time for? What was your biggest mistake?
- His answers? Sometimes humorous, sometimes emotional, always personal.
1 Murat Yakin, are you celebrating your 50th birthday or are you going underground?
Murat Yakin: Actually, I wanted to hide away and do nothing. (laughs) A nice meal with my family would have been enough for me. But some friends said that they had already bought their presents and asked what I was planning. The pressure became too much. Now, of course, I'm looking forward to seeing everyone at my party.
2. do you struggle with the number 50?
Not at all. On the contrary: I know the number "five" very well, I often wore it on my back as a player. Now there's another zero. If you want to know whether I'm having a midlife crisis, my answer is: no.
3. when do you feel old?
After a padel match, my joints hurt a lot more than they used to. The problem is that I'm ambitious when I play and always go full throttle. I then get the receipt the morning after.
4 And when do you feel young?
Whenever I look at my wife in the morning.
5. what is the best present you have ever received?
Definitely my children.
6. who shouldn't be at your party?
I could list one or two, but we'd better leave that alone for now.
7. what is your greatest wish?
That all people live in peace. Unfortunately, that will always be a wish.
8. what did you always want for your birthday as a child and never got?
A Diego Maradona jersey.
9. when was the last time you cried?
It was at my mother's deathbed.
10. which present could you have done without?
In Geneva, we were gifted four goals by the Spanish. That was so unnecessary.
11. are you a romantic person?
Romance only for cash. (Laughs)
12. what do you give yourself for your birthday?
Time for myself and peace and quiet. Nobody should try to call me on Sunday - I've put my cell phone on airplane mode.
13. what was the last present you gave your wife Anja?
It was a vase of flowers. It's better if she can choose the flowers herself. She prefers different flowers depending on her mood.
14 Do you actually give her enough attention?
I think so. If you asked her, she would probably say not enough.
15. when did you start wearing glasses?
In my mid-20s, I realized that my eyes were getting worse. Then I had laser surgery. Recently, however, my short-sightedness has returned. I notice it most when I play golf. I can no longer see the golf ball from the 280th meter.
16. what has been the best party of your life so far?
All the championship celebrations with FC Basel - and of course the party after we qualified for the World Cup in Qatar.
17 What kind of father are you?
I think a very generous one.
18. which cake makes you weak at the knees?
A carrot cake.
19. do you remember where you celebrated your 18th birthday?
I think I celebrated it at home in Basel and invited some friends over.
20 When did you drink alcohol for the first time?
When I was 17.
21. what is at the top of your bucket list?
I really want to watch a Super Bowl (the final of the US American professional football league; ed.) in the stadium.
22. what's your favorite toast?
With champagne.
23. who do you owe the most to?
Certainly my mother. In terms of sport, all my coaches
24. what or who would you like to be reborn as?
As Murat again.
25. what do you spend too much money on unnecessarily?
I don't spend too much money on anything unnecessarily.
26. what is your ideal weight and how much are you currently over it?
I've lost six kilos in the last few weeks and feel really good at the moment. When the scales showed a hundred kilos, I knew I had to do something about it.
27. did you often get into fights as a boy?
Every now and then, I was a wild one.
28. do you know the words to the Swiss national anthem by heart?
Yes.
29. did you have a role model as a child?
Yes, as a boy I always wanted to be like Rocky Balboa from the Sylvester Stallone films.
30. what was better in the past than today?
That we didn't have cell phones. It was nice not to be reachable at all times.
31 And what's better today?
That we have cell phones. It's simply an ingenious device.
32. what do people have to do wrong to get into trouble with you?
I can't do anything with people who talk non-stop and can't listen
33. can you cook well?
For the fact that my mother always told me as a boy that men don't belong in the kitchen, I'm okay. I've even mastered one recipe perfectly. Turkish omelette. It's a kind of Turkish-style cannelloni filled with minced meat.
34. are you good at forgiving?
Yes. I forgive, but I don't forget.
35. how much time a week do you spend exercising?
Between two and four hours.
36. what bothers you most about getting older?
That I'm getting older and older, but the players always stay the same age.
37 And what do you love about getting older?
My gray hair. I think it looks great on me.
38. what is the biggest mistake you have made in your life?
My great weakness for sweets. I think if I had held back, my career as a professional footballer would have lasted a few years longer.
39. what have you wasted the most time on in the last 50 years?
All the waiting in the hotels before the games.
40. what have you had too little time for?
For togetherness with my wife.
41. how long do you need in front of the mirror in the morning?
It's very quick: brush my teeth, wash my face and that's it.
42. what advice would you give 15-year-old Murat?
Murat, eat less sweets!
43 Do professional footballers earn too much?
No. Everyone earns what they have negotiated.
44. do you still have friends from your youth?
Yes, I still have friends from my youth that I see or hear from regularly.
45. what is the best gift your brother Hakan has given you?
Hakan himself is a gift. He surprises me again and again.
46. what would you have become if not a footballer?
Probably a metalwork draughtsman or locksmith. I've always been interested in architecture too.
47 What will you be doing in 10 years' time?
I only just know what I'll be doing tomorrow. I'll let myself be surprised.
48. do you have a style consultant?
No, I don't need one. I choose my clothes myself.
49. are you a relaxed driver or do you get annoyed easily?
I'm very relaxed. Why should I get upset if I'm not going anywhere? I can't change it.
50. How old do you want to be?
As long as I'm needed here on earth. I think I'll be needed for a long time to come.
