Cengiz Ünder


Cengiz Ünder is a Turkish professional footballer who plays as a winger or forward for Süper Lig club Beşiktaş, on loan from Fenerbahçe, and the Turkey national team.
𝕏 cengizunderIG cengizunder

Club career

Early career

Ünder began his professional career at Altinordu, and later transferred to [İstanbul İstanbul Başakşehir F.K.|Başakşehir F.K.|Başakşehir] for €700K. In his breakout season with Başakşehir, Ünder established himself as one of the best players in the league, scoring 7 goals in 32 games in his debut season in the Süper Lig.

Roma

On 16 July 2017, Ünder joined Serie A club Roma for a fee of €13.4 million. He scored his first goal for Roma in a 1–0 win over Hellas Verona on 4 February 2018. Later that month, he marked his Champions League debut with a goal; the opener in a 2–1 loss to Shakhtar Donetsk in the first leg of the first round of knockout fixtures, becoming the youngest Turkish player ever to score in the Champions League. In his first season with Roma, he recorded 7 goals and 1 assist in 26 league games, and 1 goal in 5 Champions League matches.
On 2 October 2018, he scored a goal and made an assist in a 5-0 win over Viktoria Plzen in a Champions League group stage match.

Loan to Leicester City

On 20 September 2020, Ünder signed for Premier League club Leicester City on a season-long loan, with the option of a permanent transfer. He made his debut in a 3–0 defeat to West Ham United, coming on as a substitute. On 25 October, he made his first goal contribution for Leicester when he assisted Jamie Vardy's winning goal in a 1–0 away win over Arsenal, which ended Leicester's 47-year wait for a victory away against Arsenal. On 10 December, Ünder scored his first Leicester goal in a 2–0 home win over AEK Athens in the UEFA Europa League.

Marseille

On 4 July 2021, Ünder moved to France, signing for Ligue 1 club Marseille on loan, with an option to buy for €9 million. On 8 August 2021, he made his debut for the club against Montpellier, where Marseille won 3–2.
On 6 April 2022, Marseille signed Ünder permanently from Roma, penning a five-year long deal.

Fenerbahçe

On 13 August 2023, Ünder signed a four-year contract with Süper Lig club Fenerbahçe for a reported fee of €15 million. On 21 August, he made his debut for the side in a 2-0 away win against Samsunspor.
On 20 December 2023, he scored his first goal for the club against Kayserispor in a match where Fenerbahçe won 4–3. On 7 January 2024, after a slow start to his career with the club, he scored four goals in a 5–1 win over Istanbulspor.

Loan to Los Angeles FC

On 20 February 2025, he joined Major League Soccer side Los Angeles FC on loan until the end of the season. On 12 March, he made his debut with an assist for the team in a CONCACAF Champions Cup match against Colombus Crew. On 29 March, he scored his first goal for the club in a 3-2 loss to San Diego FC.

Loan to Beşiktaş

On 8 September 2025, Ünder joined Süper Lig club Beşiktaş on a season-long loan with option to buy.

International career

Ünder has represented the U18 and U19 levels of the Turkey national team. He had also been called up to the Turkey U21 national team.
In November 2016, Ünder received his first call-up to the senior Turkey squad for the match against Kosovo. He scored his first international goal in his second appearance for the national team in a friendly victory against Moldova in March 2017.
On 14 May 2021, Ünder was named in Turkey's 26-man squad for the delayed UEFA Euro 2020 tournament.

Controversies

Following the Afrin offensive in Northern Syria, which was carried out by the Turkish Armed Forces in January 2018, on 11 February, Ünder performed a military salute as a goal celebration after scoring in Roma's 5–2 home win over Benevento. In October 2019, following the Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria, Ünder posted a picture of the aforementioned celebration on Twitter; his controversial post drew criticism on social media from Roma fans.
When Los Angeles FC signed Ünder in February 2025, a small LAFC supporters’ group identifying as Armenian threatened to boycott games in case of signing a Turkish player, expressing hostility toward players of Turkish nationality.

Career statistics

International

No.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1.27 March 2017New Eskişehir Stadium, Eskişehir, Turkey3–03–1Friendly
2.11 June 2017Loro Boriçi Stadium, Shkodër, Albania2–14–12018 FIFA World Cup qualification
3.13 November 2017New Antalya Stadium, Antalya, Turkey1–22–3Friendly
4.27 March 2018Podgorica City Stadium, Podgorica, Montenegro1–02–2Friendly
5.30 May 2019New Antalya Stadium, Antalya, Turkey1–02–1Friendly
6.8 June 2019Büyükşehir Stadium, Konya, Turkey2–02–0UEFA Euro 2020 qualification
7.11 November 2020Vodafone Park, Istanbul, Turkey3–33–3Friendly
8.15 November 2020Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium, Istanbul, Turkey2–13–22020–21 UEFA Nations League B
9.3 June 2021Benteler-Arena, Paderborn, Germany2–02–0Friendly
10.1 September 2021Vodafone Park, Istanbul, Turkey1–02–22022 FIFA World Cup qualification
11.7 September 2021Johan Cruyff Arena, Amsterdam, Netherlands1–61–62022 FIFA World Cup qualification
12.29 March 2022Büyükşehir Stadium, Konya, Turkey1–02–3Friendly
13.4 June 2022Başakşehir Fatih Terim Stadium, Istanbul, Turkey1–04–02022–23 UEFA Nations League C
14.22 September 2022Başakşehir Fatih Terim Stadium, Istanbul, Turkey1–13–32022–23 UEFA Nations League C
15.16 November 2022Diyarbakır Stadium, Diyarbakır, Turkey2–02–1Friendly
16.16 June 2023Skonto Stadium, Riga, Latvia2–13–2UEFA Euro 2024 qualification

Honours

Leicester City
Individual
  • Süper Lig Team of the Season: 2016–17
  • Turkish Footballer of the Year: 2018