Jem Paul Karacan (born 21 February 1989) is a former professional footballer who played as a
midfielder
In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...
. Currently a licensed football agent, Karacan spent the majority of his playing career with
Reading
Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of symbols, often specifically those of a written language, by means of Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch.
For educators and researchers, reading is a multifacete ...
, whilst also playing for
AFC Bournemouth
AFC Bournemouth ( ) is a professional association football club based in Kings Park, Boscombe, a suburb of Bournemouth, Dorset, England. The club compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. ...
,
Millwall
Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Poplar, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east of ...
,
Galatasaray
Galatasaray Spor Kulübü (, ''Galatasaray Sports Club''), more commonly referred to as simply Galatasaray and familiarly as Cimbom, is a Turkish sports club based on the European side of the city of Istanbul including basketball, wheelchair ...
,
Bursaspor
Bursaspor Kulübü Derneği, commonly known as Bursaspor, is a Turkey, Turkish professional sports club based in the city of Bursa. Founded in 1963, the club is best known for its football team, which has a rich history in Football in Turkey, Turk ...
,
Bolton Wanderers
Bolton Wanderers Football Club ( ) is a professional association football, football club based in Horwich, Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in EFL League One, League One, the third level of the Englis ...
,
Central Coast Mariners
Central Coast Mariners Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in Gosford, on the Central Coast of New South Wales. It competes in the A-League Men, under licence from the Australian Professional Leagues (APL).
The Mar ...
,
Scunthorpe United and
Radcliffe. Internationally He played for the
Turkish youth team, and has captained the U-21 side.
Early life
Karacan was born in
Catford
Catford is a district in south east London, England, and the administrative centre of the London Borough of Lewisham. It is southwest of Lewisham itself, mostly in the Rushey Green (ward), Rushey Green and Catford South Ward (electoral subdivi ...
, London to a
Turkish Cypriot
Turkish Cypriots or Cypriot Turks ( or ; ) are so called ethnic Turks originating from Cyprus. Turkish Cypriots are mainly Sunni Muslims. Following the Ottoman conquest of the island in 1571, about 30,000 Turkish settlers were given land onc ...
father and an
English mother.
Between the ages of seven and fourteen he played for the now defunct
Wimbledon
Wimbledon most often refers to:
* Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London
* Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships
Wimbledon may also refer to:
Places London
* W ...
and left after they relocated to
Milton Keynes
Milton Keynes ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in Buckinghamshire, England, about north-west of London. At the 2021 Census, the population of Milton Keynes urban area, its urban area was 264,349. The River Great Ouse forms t ...
. He had been offered a four-year contract at the club his father supported,
Galatasaray
Galatasaray Spor Kulübü (, ''Galatasaray Sports Club''), more commonly referred to as simply Galatasaray and familiarly as Cimbom, is a Turkish sports club based on the European side of the city of Istanbul including basketball, wheelchair ...
, but refused citing language difficulties, "I couldn't go out there at only 14, not speaking the language and so on".
Karacan joined Reading's Youth Academy instead, having been spotted playing against the Royals while on trial at
Manchester United
Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...
.
Club career
Reading
On 6 July 2007, he signed a two-year professional contract with Reading, and made his debut against Luton Town on 26 August in the League Cup, getting on the scoresheet.
Loan to AFC Bournemouth and Millwall
Karacan joined
AFC Bournemouth
AFC Bournemouth ( ) is a professional association football club based in Kings Park, Boscombe, a suburb of Bournemouth, Dorset, England. The club compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. ...
on loan, initially for one month, on 18 October 2007. Karacan was put into the starting XI for Bournemouth on 20 October away to
Millwall
Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Poplar, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east of ...
, where he made his league debut in Bournemouth's 2–1 defeat. His loan was subsequently extended to 6 January 2008. Karacan signed a further loan deal in the
2007–08 season on 20 March 2008, this time to
Football League One
The English Football League One, known as Sky Bet League One for sponsorship reasons, or simply League One, is a professional association football league in England. EFL League One is the second-highest division of the English Football League an ...
side
Millwall
Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Poplar, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east of ...
, which was originally due to run until 19 April 2008, but was extended to the end of the 2007–08 season.
Return to Reading
He scored against
Aston Villa
Aston Villa Football Club (commonly referred to as simply Villa) is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club, founded in 1874, compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The team have p ...
in a pre season match before the
2008–09 season, and scored his first professional goal for Reading in a
League Cup win over Luton Town on 26 August 2008. Towards the end of 2008, he began to start a few matches after impressing in the reserves and following injuries to
James Harper and
Marek Matejovsky. He signed a new 2 and half-year contract in October 2008, keeping him at the club until the end of the 2010–11 season. He scored his first league goal in Reading's 2–2 draw with
Blackpool F.C.
Blackpool Football Club is a professional association football club based in the seaside resort of Blackpool, Lancashire, England. The team competes in EFL League One, the third tier of the English football league system.
Founded in 1887, the ...
on 13 April 2009, in the
Championship
In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion.
Championship systems
Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship.
Title match system
In this sys ...
. On 20 August 2011, Karacan made his 100th appearance in all competitions for Reading against Barnsley in a 2–1 defeat. During Reading's 2–0 victory over
Leeds United
Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The team compete in the Premier League, the top tier of the English football league system.
Leeds United have won the League Championship th ...
on 6 April, Karacan suffered a broken ankle after a tackle by
Michael Brown. He signed a new contract on 19 September 2012 keeping him at the club until June 2015. On 4 May 2013 Karacan scored his first
Premier League
The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...
goal with a low shot into the bottom corner in Reading's 4–2 away win against
Fulham
Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies in a loop on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea, London, Chelsea ...
.
He began the 2013–14 season in good goalscoring form, netting twice in a 3–3 draw against
Watford
Watford () is a town and non-metropolitan district with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Hertfordshire, England, northwest of Central London, on the banks of the River Colne, Hertfordshire, River Colne.
Initially a smal ...
on 17 August. A month later he again suffered a serious injury in a game against Leeds and had to be substituted after nine minutes. The club later confirmed that he had ruptured both his
anterior cruciate and
medial
Medial may refer to:
Mathematics
* Medial magma, a mathematical identity in algebra Geometry
* Medial axis, in geometry the set of all points having more than one closest point on an object's boundary
* Medial graph, another graph that repr ...
ligaments and would be out for six to nine months. After more than a year out, he entered the final part of his recovery in October 2014.
For the 2014–15 season, Karacan was made captain by Nigel Adkins and changed his squad number to 21, due to his admiration for Italian maestro
Andrea Pirlo
Andrea Pirlo (; born 19 May 1979) is an Italian association football, football manager (association football), manager and former professional player. Considered one of the greatest Midfielder (association football)#Deep-lying playmaker, mi ...
. He made a brief return from his injury nightmare on 10 January 2015, coming on as a late substitute against
Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough ( ), colloquially known as Boro, is a port town in the Borough of Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England. Lying to the south of the River Tees, Middlesbrough forms part of the Teesside Built up area, built-up area and the Tees Va ...
,. He scored a consolation goal from 20 yards on 14 March, after replacing
Jake Taylor as a second-half substitute in a 4–1 defeat at
Vicarage Road
Vicarage Road is a stadium in Watford, England, and is the home stadium of EFL Championship, Championship club Watford F.C., Watford. An all-seater stadium, its current capacity is 22,200.
History
It has been the home of Watford since 1922, w ...
, in his second appearance of the season.
He went on to play in each of the remaining games and made his final appearance in a Reading FC shirt in a 3–0 away victory against Derby County.
Galatasaray
On 8 July 2015, Karacan joined
Galatasaray
Galatasaray Spor Kulübü (, ''Galatasaray Sports Club''), more commonly referred to as simply Galatasaray and familiarly as Cimbom, is a Turkish sports club based on the European side of the city of Istanbul including basketball, wheelchair ...
on a three-year contract following the expiration of his
Reading
Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of symbols, often specifically those of a written language, by means of Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch.
For educators and researchers, reading is a multifacete ...
contract at the end of the
2014–15 season.
Karacan made his debut for the club in a 1–0 victory against Bursaspor in the Super Cup final, replacing
Lukas Podolski
Lukas Josef Podolski (; born Łukasz Józef Podolski, , 4 June 1985) is a professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Forward (association football), forward or attacking midfielder for Ekstraklasa club Górnik Zabrze. He is kno ...
in the final 10 minutes of the game.
He made his
Süper Lig
The Süper Lig (, ''Super League''), also known as Trendyol Süper Lig for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Turkey and the highest level of the Turkish football league system. In the 2023–2024 season, twen ...
debut against
Gaziantepspor
Gaziantepspor was a Turkish football club located in the city of Gaziantep. Formed in 1969 and dissolved in 2020, Gaziantepspor were nicknamed the ''Şahinler'' (The Falcons). The club colours were black and red, and they played their home matc ...
after replacing
Yasin Öztekin, and Galatasaray won that match 2–1. Karacan played 90 minutes against
Eskişehirspor
Eskişehirspor Kulübü is a Turkish football club located in Eskişehir. Founded in 1965, Eskişehirspor competed in the top division of Turkish football for 16 years until they were relegated. After being out of the Süper Lig for 12 years the ...
where his team won 4–0, showing himself as a
central midfielder
In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...
both offensively and defensively.
Karacan made his Champions League debut on 25 November 2015 completing 90 minutes away to
Atlético Madrid
Club Atlético de Madrid, S.A.D. (; meaning "Athletic Club of Madrid"), commonly referred to as Atlético Madrid or simply Atlético, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid that plays in La Liga. The club play their home game ...
in a 2–0 defeat.
He scored his first goal for the club in a 4–0 win against Kastamonuspor in the Turkish Cup on 26 January 2016. This was his last appearance before leaving to join Bursaspor for the remainder of the season.
Karacan left Galatasaray by mutual consent on 6 January 2017.
Loan to Bursaspor
On 1 February 2016, Karacan was loaned to fellow
Süper Lig
The Süper Lig (, ''Super League''), also known as Trendyol Süper Lig for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Turkey and the highest level of the Turkish football league system. In the 2023–2024 season, twen ...
club
Bursaspor
Bursaspor Kulübü Derneği, commonly known as Bursaspor, is a Turkey, Turkish professional sports club based in the city of Bursa. Founded in 1963, the club is best known for its football team, which has a rich history in Football in Turkey, Turk ...
until the end of the
2015–16.
He played 10 games whilst on loan at Bursaspor playing mainly as a central midfielder but showing versatility by playing his final game for the club appearing as right back and getting man of the match in a 1–1 draw with Konyaspor.
Bursaspor enquired about the permanent signing of Karacan but according to reports the financial situation at the club meant negotiations broke down.
Bolton Wanderers
On 11 March 2017, Karacan joined
Bolton Wanderers
Bolton Wanderers Football Club ( ) is a professional association football, football club based in Horwich, Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in EFL League One, League One, the third level of the Englis ...
on a one-month contract, making his debut for the Trotters from the substitutes bench that same day, coming on for
Darren Pratley in a 4–2 win away at
Fleetwood Town. On the final day of the season, Karacan scored the opening goal to put Bolton 1-0 up against
Peterborough United in a 3–0 win, which was enough to seal promotion back to
Championship
In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion.
Championship systems
Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship.
Title match system
In this sys ...
as runners up. On 24 May, the club confirmed that Karacan had signed a one-year deal, with an option for a further year, keeping him at the club until at least June 2018. Parkinson made Karacan captain for several games during the first third of the season and then due to unknown circumstances he was out of favour. On 23 May 2018, Karacan confirmed that the option on his contract was not activated and was leaving Bolton Wanderers at the end of his contract in June 2018. The day after, Bolton confirmed that Karacan would leave the club at the end of his contract.
Millwall
On 17 August 2018,
Millwall
Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Poplar, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east of ...
announced the signing of Karacan on a short-term deal until January 2019. Karacan left Millwall at the end of his contract on 15 January 2019.
Central Coast Mariners
On 24 January 2019,
Central Coast Mariners
Central Coast Mariners Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in Gosford, on the Central Coast of New South Wales. It competes in the A-League Men, under licence from the Australian Professional Leagues (APL).
The Mar ...
announced the signing of Karacan on a contract until the end of the
2018–19 season.
Scunthorpe United
Karacan joined
League Two club
Scunthorpe United on a short-term deal on 4 January 2021. At the end of the
2020–21 season, after helping Scunthorpe United avoid relegation and playing 24 times, Karacan left the club with the expiration of his contract. He was one of 17 players released by Scunthorpe at the end of the 2020–21 season.
Radcliffe
On 2 July 2022,
Radcliffe announced the signing of Karacan.
Retirement
On 23 January 2023, Karacan announced his retirement from football.
International career
Born to a Turkish father and English mother, Karacan is eligible to represent both countries at international level. He chose to represent
Turkey
Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
and has captained them at youth level. He made his debut for the
under-21s as a substitute against
Armenia
Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...
in August 2008,
before making his first appearance for the
A2 team when they beat
Estonia
Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...
5–0 in March 2012. Karacan received his first senior call-up for
Turkey
Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
on 13 October 2012, for the
2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
The 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification was a series of tournaments organised by the six FIFA#Structure, FIFA confederations. The 2014 FIFA World Cup featured 32 teams, with one place reserved for the host nation, Brazil national football team, Bra ...
match against
Hungary
Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...
, but was an unused substitute.
Career statistics
Honours
;Reading
*
EFL Championship
The English Football League Championship, known simply as the Championship and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Bet Championship, is a professional association football league in England and Wales. Contested by 24 clubs, it is the highest divi ...
:
2011–12
;Galatasaray
*
Turkish Super Cup
The Turkish Super Cup, known as Turkcell Super Cup () for sponsorship reasons, is a super cup tournament in Turkish football. Founded in 1966 as a two-team competition, the current version has been contested since 2025 by four teams: the winners ...
:
2015
2015 was designated by the United Nations as:
* International Year of Light
* International Year of Soil __TOC__
Events
January
* January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...
References
External links
Jem Karacan profileat Reading F.C.
Jem Karacan profileat the Turkish Football Federation
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Karacan, Jem
1989 births
Living people
Footballers from the London Borough of Lewisham
People from Catford
English men's footballers
Turkish men's footballers
Turkey men's youth international footballers
Turkey men's under-21 international footballers
Turkey men's B international footballers
Men's association football midfielders
Reading F.C. players
AFC Bournemouth players
Millwall F.C. players
Galatasaray S.K. footballers
Bursaspor footballers
Bolton Wanderers F.C. players
Central Coast Mariners FC players
Scunthorpe United F.C. players
Radcliffe F.C. players
Premier League players
English Football League players
Süper Lig players
Sportspeople of Turkish Cypriot descent
English people of Turkish descent
English people of Turkish Cypriot descent
Turkish people of English descent
English expatriate men's footballers
Turkish expatriate men's footballers
Expatriate men's soccer players in Australia
English expatriate sportspeople in Australia
Turkish expatriate sportspeople in Australia
21st-century English sportsmen
21st-century Turkish sportsmen