Attila Szalai

Attila Szalai
Attila Árpád Szalai (born 20 January 1998) is a Hungarian professional footballer who plays as a centre-back or left-back for Bundesliga club TSG Hoffenheim and the Hungary national team.
Club career
Early years
He started playing football in Göd, then moved to youth team of Vác FC and later to the youth team of Vasas's academy,
Rapid Wien
In 2012, the Austrian Bundesliga team Rapid Wien which has won the most Austrian championship titles (32), called him and after a week of trials, he was signed. First, he played in the club's youth and reserve teams, in the third division, and then he was promoted to the senior team. He made his debut as a professional at the age of 18 on 11 May 2016, starting in a 1–1 home tie against Altach. It was the only one time to play for the team in professional level.
Mezőkövesd
On 1 July 2017, he had signed a three-year contract with Mezőkövesd. In two seasons in the Hungarian top flight, he scored two goals in 45 matches for the club.
Apollon Limassol
On 1 July 2019, he had signed a four-year contract with Cypriot team Apollon Limassol.
He made his debut in the Cypriot team on as a half-time substitute in the UEFA Europa League qualifying match against Kauno Žalgiris, which his team won 2–0 on 11 July 2019. He also scored his first goal in his new team in the second leg of the duel on 18 July 2019.
In November 2020, the Turkish club Galatasaray inquired about signing him.
Fenerbahçe
On 17 January 2021, Szalai signed a four-and-a-half-year contract with Fenerbahçe On 25 January 2021, he made his debut for Fenerbahçe in a Süper Lig game against Kayserispor at the Ülker Arena, which Fenerbahçe won 3–0.
On 8 March 2021, he scored his first goal in the Süper Lig against Konyaspor at the Konya Büyükşehir Stadium on the 29th matchday of the 2020–21 Süper Lig season. Fenerbahçe won 3–0.
On 28 February 2022, he scored his first and only goal in the 2021–22 Süper Lig season against Kasımpaşa S.K. at the Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Stadium, Istanbul. The match ended with a 2–1 victory for Fenerbahçe.
In the 2022–23 Süper Lig season, he played 32 matches and scored two goals. He scored his first goal of the season in a 4–0 victory against Konyaspor on 25 February 2023. On 10 April 2023, he scored in a 2–1 away victory against Fatih Karagümrük S.K. at the Atatürk Olympic Stadium, Istanbul.
On 11 June 2023, he won the 2023 Turkish Cup final with Fenerbahçe. In the final, his club beat 2–0 İstanbul Başakşehir F.K.
Although he was linked with a move to 1. FC Union Berlin early summer of 2023, he was purchased by TSG Hoffenheim.
TSG Hoffenheim
On 24 July 2023, Szalai joined TSG Hoffenheim on a four-year contract deal, for a fee of €12.3 million.
On 19 August 2023, he debuted against SC Freiburg in a 2-1 defeat at home in the 2023–24 Bundesliga season. He also scored an own goal in the 39th minute. Consequently, he was substituted in the half time and not featured in the starting line-up in the club' subsequent match against 1. FC Heidenheim. On 2 September 2023, he played against VfL Wolfsburg and he was not substituted.
International career
Szalai made his debut for Hungary national team on 15 November 2019 in a friendly against Uruguay. He was substituted for Botond Baráth in the 72nd minute.
On 1 June 2021, Szalai was included in the final 26-man squad to represent Hungary at the rescheduled UEFA Euro 2020 tournament.
He scored his first goal against Luxembourg in a friendly match at the Stade de Luxembourg in Gasperich, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg on 17 November 2022.
Career statistics
International
.
Scores and results list Hungary's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Szalai goal.
Honours
Fenerbahçe
Turkish Cup: 2022–23
Personal life
Szalai is the third most popular sportsperson in Hungary, based on followers on Instagram.
In an interview with Nemzeti Sport, his father, also named Attila Szalai, said that in a transfer the most important factor is not the money, but being happy with the move.
On 27 December 2022, he played an important role before the match against Hatayspor by holding a picture of a 6-year-old boy who suffers from Leukemia. In this way, Mustafa Roni Güclü could 'participate' in the match.
He donated blood to the victims of the 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquake along with other footballers of Fenerbahçe S.K..
References
External links
1998 births
Living people
Footballers from Budapest
Hungarian men's footballers
Hungary men's youth international footballers
Hungary men's under-21 international footballers
Hungary men's international footballers
Men's association football midfielders
SK Rapid Wien players
Mezőkövesdi SE footballers
Apollon Limassol FC players
Fenerbahçe S.K. footballers
TSG 1899 Hoffenheim players
Austrian Football Bundesliga players
Nemzeti Bajnokság I players
Cypriot First Division players
Süper Lig players
Bundesliga players
UEFA Euro 2020 players
Hungarian expatriate men's footballers
Expatriate men's footballers in Austria
Expatriate men's footballers in Cyprus
Expatriate men's footballers in Turkey
Expatriate men's footballers in Germany
Hungarian expatriate sportspeople in Austria
Hungarian expatriate sportspeople in Cyprus
Hungarian expatriate sportspeople in Turkey
Hungarian expatriate sportspeople in Germany