Tugay was born and raised in Istanbul. He started playing football in youth academy of Trabzonspor. His father and brother were also football players. He played for Galatasaray from 1987 to 2000, where he won the Turkish League six times and the Turkey Cup four times. The midfielder was made captain at Galatasaray in the 1992–93 season, making him the youngest captain in the history of his club. He had signed for Scottish club Rangers in the January 2000 mid season transfer window, and joined Blackburn Rovers for the 2001–02 season. Former Galatasaray boss Graeme Souness brought Tugay to Ewood Park from Scottish side Rangers F.C. in the summer of 2001 for a £1.3m fee. His debut for Rovers was as a substitute against Sunderland. His first goal came on 14 October 2001 in a 7–1 home thrashing against West Ham United in which he scored with a trademark effort from outside the box, lobbing the keeper. Tugay immediately became a fan favourite at Blackburn, where he has been an integral part of the club's success on the field since his first season. Unfortunately he missed Blackburn's League Cup final win in 2002 through suspension. Tugay was named Blackburn's Player of the Year in the 2003–04 campaign. Tugay retired from football on 24 May 2009. His last game was against West Bromwich Albion at home at Ewood Park in a capacity of about 28,389 adoring fans, for both Blackburn and West Brom whilst applauding Tugay during the match once he went off as a substitute in the 85th minute to be replaced by Swedish left back Martin Olsson. He made a name for himself at Blackburn F.C when he struck several long-range efforts. His final career goal came against Portsmouth in a 3–2 Premier League defeat at Fratton Park on 30 November 2008. 98 days on from his 38th birthday, it made him the fourth oldest player ever to score a goal in the Premier League.
Primarily a deep-lying playmaker in midfield, he was also competent as an attacking midfielder or playing in the holding role. Continually recognised for his ability he was highly rated in the football industry. In 2000, former Romanian legend Gheorghe Hagi rated him as one of the finest ball-playing midfielders in Europe, and in 2006, Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson had suggested that if he were ten years younger, Tugay's ability would make him an ideal player for the Old Trafford team. When Tugay's manager at the time, Mark Hughes, was asked if he too wished Tugay was ten years younger, his answer was "No, because if he was, he'd be playing in a Barcelona shirt."
Managerial career
On 3 June 2009 Tugay began working with his former manager Mark Hughes behind the scenes at Manchester City academy in a coaching role. He was linked for various assistant positions for the Turkish national team after Fatih Terim's departure, however he became the coordinator for the Galatasaray youth academy in February 2010. On 21 October 2010, Galatasaray SK announced that Tugay was assigned for the position of the new assistant coach for Galatasaray, alongside of Gheorghe Hagi. On 22 March 2011, Hagi was sacked following a string of poor results. Tugay refused to become the head coach until the end of the season, saying it would be wrong to accept the position for the head coach right after the sacking of Hagi. On 4 October 2013, Galatasaray SK announced that Tugay was assigned again for the position of the new assistant coach for Galatasaray, this time alongside of Roberto Mancini. However, after Mancini's dismissal at the end of the 2013–14 season, he left his position.
Personal life
Tugay generally keeps himself out of the media spotlight, and even with very good English and an apparent good sense of humour, he rarely gives an interview, even to his previous club's own radio station. Tugay is married to Etkin, a former Galatasaray and Turkish international basketball player. He has two children, named Berke and Melissa. As a youngster, he was also an extremely promising motor racer, competing as high as a Formula 3 level. His prowess as a cook is also revered, and in 2010 he was victorious in the Turkish version of the television programmeMasterChef. Tugay describes himself as a Muslim, stating that it's "something which is in my heart and I don't need to express that to other people".
