Edvin Kurtulus

Edvin Kurtulus (Albanian: Edvin Kurtulush, Turkish: Edvin Kurtuluş; born 5 March 2000) is a Swedish professional footballer who plays as a centre-back or right-back for Ludogorets Razgrad and the Sweden national team.

Edvin Kurtulus

Personal information
Date of birth	(2000-03-05) 5 March 2000 (age 24)
Place of birth	Halmstad, Sweden
Height	1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)[1]
Position(s)	Centre-back, right-back
Team information
Current team	Ludogorets Razgrad
Number	15
Youth career
2005–2019	Halmstads BK
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2019–2021	Halmstads BK	58	(1)
2022–2024	Hammarby IF	66	(3)
2024–	Ludogorets Razgrad	3	(0)
International career‡
2020–2022	Kosovo U21	12	(0)
2022–	Sweden	4	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 12:24, 23 August 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 23:53, 16 June 2023 (UTC)

Club career

Halmstads BK

At the age of five, Kurtulus started to play football with local club Halmstads BK.^[2] In 2018 and 2019, as a youth player, he went on trial with both Fenerbahçe in Turkey and Copenhagen in Denmark.^[3][4]

On 20 December 2018, Kurtulus signed his first professional contract with Halmstad.^[5] On 5 May 2019, he made his debut in Superettan, Sweden's second tier, in a 0–1 loss to Östers IF.^[6] After impressing manager Magnus Haglund, Kurtulus ended the season making 11 league appearances, of which he started ten, mostly as a right-back.^[7]

In 2020, Kurtulus continued as a starter for Halmstad when the club won Superettan and secured a promotion to Allsvenskan. He made 18 league appearances in total, mostly playing as a centre-back, before his season was cut short in September when he was diagnosed with pericarditis.^[7][8][9]

In 2021, Kurtulus was a key player for Halmstad in Allsvenskan, playing 29 league games. The club eventually suffered from a relegation after losing to Helsingborgs IF with 1–3 on aggregate in the relegation play-offs.^[10]

Hammarby IF

On 12 August 2021, Kurtulus signed a three-year deal with fellow Allsvenskan club Hammarby IF, effective in January 2022.^[11] On 20 February 2022, he made his debut with Hammarby in the 2021–22 Svenska Cupen group stage against Falkenbergs FF after coming on as a substitute at 62nd minute in place of Simon Sandberg.^[12] His league debut with Hammarby came on 2 April in a 2–1 home win against Helsingborgs IF after coming on as a substitute at 83rd minute in place of Richard Magyar.^[13] Seven days after league debut, Kurtulus scored his first goal for Hammarby in his fifth appearance for the club in a 1–5 away win over GIF Sundsvall in Allsvenskan.^[14] Kurtulus featured in the final of the 2021–22 Svenska Cupen, in which Hammarby lost by 4–5 on penalties to Malmö FF after the game ended in a 0–0 draw.^[15][16] In total, Kurtulus went on to make 27 league appearances for the club, that finished 3rd in the 2022 Allsvenskan table.^[17]

On 17 February 2023, Kurtulus signed a new three-year contract with Hammarby.^[18] On 2 April, he was appointed as the new vice-captain of the club, behind Nahir Besara.^[19] Throughout the 2023 season, Kurtulus made 27 league appearances in Allsvenskan, although Hammarby disappointedly finished 7th in the table.^[17] In August the same year, the club reportedly accepted an offer worth around €3 million from Sturm Graz for his transfer, but Kurtulus turned down the move.^[20]

Ludogorets Razgrad

In June 2024, he joined Bulgarian team Ludogorets Razgrad.^[21]

International career

Kosovo

Under-21

On 29 August 2020, Kurtulus received a call-up from Kosovo U21 for the 2021 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification match against England U21,^[22] and made his debut in the 0–6 loss after being named in the starting line-up.^[23][24]

Senior

On 23 May 2022, Kurtulus received a call-up from Kosovo for the 2022–23 UEFA Nations League matches against Cyprus, Greece (twice) and Northern Ireland.^[25] Four days later, the Football Federation of Kosovo confirmed through a press conference that Kurtulus will not be part of the team after deciding to represent Sweden national team.^[26][27]

Sweden

On 30 May 2022, the Swedish Football Association announced that FIFA had given Kurtulus permission to play for their national team and that he had been called-up to replace the injured Victor Lindelöf and Martin Olsson for the 2022–23 UEFA Nations League matches against Slovenia, Norway (twice) and Serbia.^[28] His debut with Sweden came on 9 June in the 2022–23 UEFA Nations League match against Serbia after coming on as a substitute in the 42nd minute in place of Joakim Nilsson.^[29]

Personal life

Kurtulus was born in Halmstad, Sweden to parents with roots from Prizren.^[30] His grandparents had emigrated as muhaxhir to Turkey where they took the surname Kurtuluş (meaning "liberation" in Turkish) due to the Turkish surname law. In the 1960s, Kurtulus' family migrated to Sweden, where Edvin's father was born.^[31]

Edvin's younger brother Bleon Kurtulus is also a professional footballer and plays for his hometown club of Halmstads BK.^[32]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 23 August 2024^[33][34]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			Cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Halmstads BK	2019	Superettan	11	0	1	0	—		12	0
	2020	Superettan	18	1	4	0	—		22	1
	2021	Allsvenskan	29	0	1	0	2[lower-alpha 1]	0	32	0
	Total		58	1	6	0	2	0	66	1
Hammarby IF	2022	Allsvenskan	27	2	5	0	—		32	2
	2023		27	0	6	1	1[lower-alpha 2]	0	34	1
	2024		12	1	0	0	—		12	1
	Total		66	3	11	1	1	0	78	4
Ludogorets Razgrad	2024–25	Bulgarian First League	3	0	0	0	3	0	6	0
Career total			127	4	17	1	5	0	149	5

1. Appearances in the Allsvenskan relegation play-offs
2. Appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League

International

As of 16 June 2023^[35]

Appearances and goals by national team and year

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Sweden
	2022	2	0
	2023	2	0
Total		4	0

References

1. Supportrarnas Matchprogram NR 424. Stockholm: Supportrarnas Matchprogram. 3 August 2023. p. 17.
2. "HBK-spelaren: Edvin Kurtulus" [HBK player: Edvin Kurtulus] (in Swedish). Halmstads BK. 15 October 2019.
3. "Krulj: "Det är tre spännande talanger"" [Krulj: "They are three exciting talents"] (in Swedish). Hallandsposten. 20 December 2018.
4. "Kurtulus spelade med FC Köpenhamn mot HIF" [Kurtulus played with FC Copenhagen against HIF] (in Swedish). Halmstads BK. 22 March 2019.
5. "HBK skriver kontrakt med tre talanger" [Halmstad BK signs three talents] (in Swedish). Halmstads BK. 20 December 2018.
6. "Edvin Kurtulus tankar inför Dalkurd – HBK" [Edvin Kurtulus' thoughts on Dalkurd-HBK] (in Swedish). Halmstads BK. 7 June 2019.
7. "Kurtulus hoppas på fortsatt succé på nygammal position" [Kurtulus is hopeful of success in an old position] (in Swedish). Unicoach. 8 February 2021.
8. "Edvin tvingas till vila" [Edvin is forced to rest] (in Swedish). Halmstads BK. 8 September 2020.
9. "HBK vinner Superettan!" [HBK is the winner of Superettan!] (in Swedish). Halmstads BK. 28 November 2020.
10. "Helsingborg tillbaka i Allsvenskan" [Helsingborg is back in Allsvenskan] (in Swedish). Swedish Football Association. 15 December 2021.
11. "Hektiskt avslut på deadline day – tre avtal klara" [Hectic end to deadline day – three agreements ready] (in Swedish). Hammarby Fotboll. 12 August 2021.
12. "Hammarby vs. Falkenberg 2–1". Soccerway. Retrieved 20 February 2022.
13. "Hammarby vs. Helsingborg 2–1". Soccerway. Retrieved 2 April 2022.
14. "GIF Sundsvall vs. Hammarby 1–5". Soccerway. Retrieved 9 April 2022.
15. "Straffar gav MFF första cupguldet på 33 år" (in Swedish). Swedish Football Association. 26 May 2022. Retrieved 26 May 2022.
16. "Bajen golvat från elva meter i titelmatchen" (in Swedish). Hammarby Fotboll. 26 May 2022. Retrieved 26 May 2022.
17. "Edvin Kurtulus" (in Swedish). Swedish Football Association. Retrieved 18 February 2023.
18. "Hammarby förlänger med Edvin Kurtulus" (in Swedish). Hammarby Fotboll. 17 February 2023. Retrieved 18 February 2023.
19. "Årets lagkaptener utsedda" (in Swedish). Hammarby Fotboll. 2 April 2023. Retrieved 20 July 2023.
20. ""Känner att jag har större potential än det"" (in Swedish). Aftonbladet. 1 September 2023. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
21. Mladenova, Kremena (24 June 2024). "Лудогорец представи официално новите си попълнения Дуарте и Куртулуш" (in Bulgarian). bta.bg. Retrieved 20 August 2024.
22. "Prekazi publikon listën e futbollistëve për ndeshjen kundër Anglisë" [Prekazi publishes the list of footballers for the match against England] (in Albanian). Football Federation of Kosovo. 29 August 2020.
23. "Kosova – Angli, publikohen formacionet zyrtare" [Kosovo – England, official lineups are published] (in Albanian). Kallxo. 4 September 2020.
24. "Edvin debuterade" [Edvin made his debut] (in Swedish). Halmstads BK. 5 September 2020.
25. "Alain Giresse publikon listën e futbollistëve për ndeshjet e qershorit" [Alain Giresse publishes the list of footballers for the June matches] (in Albanian). Football Federation of Kosovo. 23 May 2022.
26. "Kurtulus braktis Kosovën për Suedinë, Giresse: Jam i zhgënjyer me vendimin e tij" [Kurtulus leaves Kosovo for Sweden, Giresse: I'm disappointed with his decision] (in Albanian). Football Federation of Kosovo. 27 May 2022.
27. "Edvin Kurtulus vill representera Sverige" [Edvin Kurtulus wants to represent Sweden] (in Swedish). Swedish Football Association. 27 May 2022.
28. "Två återbud första samlingsdagen" [Two rebids on the first day of the meeting] (in Swedish). Swedish Football Association. 30 May 2022.
29. "Orutinerat Sverige förlorade mot Serbien" [Untrained Sweden lost to Serbia] (in Swedish). Swedish Football Association. 9 June 2022.
30. Kosovan Football [@kosovanfooty_en] (29 August 2020). "A new name seen in the #Kosovo U21 squad: Edvin Kurtulus! Born in Sweden, but of family origin from Prizren, the 20 y/o right back is a regular starter for Halmstad BK. Welcome home young man!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
31. "Profilen: Edvin Kurtulus" [Profile: Edvin Kurtulus] (in Swedish). Halmstads BK. 12 March 2020.
32. Asahara, Makoto (25 May 2024). "Bleon Kurtulus om stödet från brorsan Edvin" [Bleon Kurtulus about the support from his brother Edvin]. aftonbladet.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 15 October 2024.
33. Edvin Kurtulus at Soccerway
34. Edvin Kurtulus at the Swedish Football Association (in Swedish)
35. "Edvin Kurtulus". eu-football.info. 9 June 2022.

External links

• Edvin Kurtulus at Soccerway
• Edvin Kurtulus at the Swedish Football Association (in Swedish)