Sahin: I was at Istanbul
Nuri Sahin has revealed how he was present for one of the biggest nights of Liverpool Football Club's history in Istanbul.
Our new No.4, who signed a season-long loan deal with the Reds today, was at the Ataturk Stadium as Rafael Benitez's side came from three goals down to beat AC Milan on penalties in the 2005 Champions League final.
Sahin takes up the story: "I know a lot about Liverpool Football Club - I know it is a very big club with a huge history, with big players and big trophies. When they won the biggest trophy in 2005, I was in the stadium in Istanbul. It was my first taste of Liverpool.
"That year, I won the European U17 Championship with Turkey, so we were invited by the Turkish Football Federation to watch the game.
"We were sitting near to where the Liverpool fans were and it was just a crazy, crazy night. It was then I saw what football and Liverpool Football Club means to the people."
We've given you one - and here are nine more interesting facts about our new signing...
1. At the beginning of his career, Sahin made a habit of breaking records for being the youngest person to achieve a certain feat. In the space of a few short months in 2005, the midfielder became both the youngest debutant and youngest goalscorer in Bundesliga history, and in between he set exactly the same pair of landmarks for his national team, Turkey.
2. Nuri's arrival means there are now 13 Liverpool first-team players on Twitter. The Turk may have only tweeted just under 300 times since opening his account, but more than half a million people follow his feed. Even more fans subscribe to Sahin's Facebook profile, with a total of one million likes registered to date.
3. The 23-year-old is the first Turkish player ever to join Liverpool, another new record to add to his CV. The deal marks the eighth transfer agreed between the Reds and Real Madrid, with Sahin the third man to swap Spain for Anfield after moves for Antonio Nunez and Fernando Morientes.
4. Sahin has been a title-winner in both of the last two seasons, winning the German championship in 2010-11 with Borussia Dortmund and La Liga with Spanish side Real Madrid last season. In total, Nuri has three club honours to his name, having also won the Dutch Cup during a loan spell with Feyenoord in 2008.
5. Sahin's transfer to Liverpool continues an impressive trend for the midfielder of only having played for clubs who have won the Champions League or European Cup. Borussia Dortmund and Feyenoord ruled the continent in 1997 and 1970 respectively, while Real Madrid have lifted the trophy a record nine times.
6. After scoring his maiden goal for Turkey on his debut, during a friendly against Germany in 2005, Sahin had to wait seven years to add to his tally. His second strike eventually came in another friendly, with Georgia in May this year. Nuri has made 31 appearances for his country to date.
7. Although yet to feature at a major international tournament, Nuri enjoyed a stellar career at youth level. Then aged 16, the midfielder was instrumental as Turkey won the European U17 Championship and then finished fourth at the U17 World Cup later in the year. At the latter tournament, Sahin was the second highest scorer and voted third best player of the competition.
8. Sahin played such an integral role in Dortmund's 2010-11 title victory, scoring six times and providing eight goals for others, that he was named Bundesliga Player of the Season by respected German magazine Kicker.
9. Our new midfielder may represent Turkey at international level, but he was actually born in Germany. The western town Ludenscheid was his birthplace and he holds dual citizenship, but both of Sahin's parents are Turkish. His first appearance for his country was therefore particularly poignant because it came in a friendly against Germany.