Lilien honorary captain Aytac Sulu puts on his football boots again: The district league club VfR Heilbronn surprisingly announced the commitment of the 36-year-old.
Darmstadt/Heilbronn – Actually, Aytac Sulu (36), cult kicker and hero of the rise SV Darmstadt 98, 2020 hung up the football boots. But now the central defender is celebrating his comeback on the football field!
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Aytac Sulu (36) celebrated his greatest successes at SV Darmstadt 98. With the Lilies, he surprisingly rose to the 1st Bundesliga as captain in 2015 and held the class for another year. © dpa/Boris Rössler
Eighth division club VfR Heilbronn announced that the 36-year-old will play for the leaders of the Unterland district league next Sunday in the game at FSV Schwaigern.
According to the club, this is a reaction to the currently very thin staffing level, which could still thwart Heilbronn’s promotion plans. Eight games before the end of the season, the former second division team is five points ahead of second-placed SG Gundelsheim.
The contact to Sulu, who lives in Nußloch near Heidelberg, just 50 kilometers away, came about through the still active Heilbronn oldies Zdenko Juric (48) and Soner Celen (41), with whom Sulu played at the beginning of his career at SV Sandhausen.
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However, Sulu will not be available for every game for professional reasons, VfR Heilbronn said. The 36-year-old is currently working as an assistant coach for the U23s at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim.
In the course of his career, the German-Turk, who was born in Heidelberg, completed 60 Bundesliga games and 81 games in the 2. Liga – all for SV Darmstadt 98.
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In 2015 he achieved sensational promotion to the top flight of German football as captain with the lilies, and the following year the equally surprising relegation. The central defender, who is strong in the air, made a significant contribution to this with his seven goals in 33 games.
At the beginning of 2019, Sulu moved to Turkey to join third division team Samsunspor before returning to Germany in January 2020 and ending his career at FC Carl Zeiss Jena in the third division at the end of the season.
Aytac Sulu still enjoys cult status in Darmstadt. In 2019 he was named honorary captain by SV Darmstadt 98.
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