‘injured’ Burak Yilmaz shows up at the previous club

A day before Fortuna Sittard finishes the away match at Excelsior, striker Burak Yilmaz was spotted in the stands at Lille OSC. The Turkish striker has not been part of the selection of coach Julio Velázquez for four games, officially due to an injury.

As a result, Yilmaz (37) missed the duels with AZ, Go Ahead Eagles, Vitesse and PSV in recent weeks. Because the duel with the team from Arnhem was won 2-0, Fortuna is already certain of survival two games before the end of the competition. The Limburgers are twelfth and are finished; the playoffs for European football are out of reach.

Yilmaz’s visit to his previous club Lille, which will compete against Olympique Marseille on Saturday evening, cannot be called very mysterious. The club itself released a photo via social media showing Yilmaz, complete with club scarf. Between 2020 and 2022, Yilmaz was under contract with the northern French club, with which he seized the national title in 2021.

Yilmaz’s future has been the subject of much speculation lately. At the beginning of April, he caused a stir by apparently announcing his farewell in a message on Instagram after the 3-1 home game against FC Groningen. He then played against Ajax in the Johan Cruijff Arena, but since then he has been missing from Fortuna’s selection due to an alleged injury.