Merih Demiral

Merih Demiral is a Turkish centre-back who won Serie A and Coppa Italia honours with Juventus before moving to Al-Ahli in Saudi Arabia in 2023. He is best known internationally for scoring twice against Austria in the UEFA Euro 2024 round of 16.

Demiral began his European career in Portugal with Sporting CP before short stints at Alanyaspor and Sassuolo. He joined Juventus in 2019, winning the Serie A title in 2019–20 and a Coppa Italia and Supercoppa that followed. He later moved to Atalanta on loan, then permanently, before signing for Al-Ahli in 2023.

With Al-Ahli he has won consecutive AFC Champions League Elite titles and the Saudi Super Cup. For Turkey he has earned 63 caps and 6 goals, including his memorable brace against Austria at Euro 2024, with his first goal setting a record as the fastest in the knockout stages.