Calhanoglu following his brace: "I always give my all, we're a family and it shows"
Team
— Jan 13th 2024The post-match thoughts of Hakan Calhanoglu, who scored his first-ever double in Serie A, and Henrikh Mkhitaryan
A midfield maestro, and not bad in front of goal either. Hakan Calhanoglu also left his mark in Monza, where he bagged his first-ever Serie A brace. The Turk continues to rewrite personal records: this season, he's scored nine league goals, seven of which have come from the penalty spot, and ten in all competitions.
CALHANOGLU FACTS
Çalhanoglu bagged his first brace in the Italian top flight on his 222nd appearance in Serie A. The midfielder had previously scored twice in the same match in one of the top five European leagues on 22 January 2017; he did so for Bayer Leverkusen against Hertha Berlin in the Bundesliga.
Hakan Çalhanoglu has scored nine goals in 20 league matches this season, meaning he's already equalled his best-ever tally in a Serie A season (nine goals in 35 appearances in 2019/20).
Only Jude Bellingham (13) has netted more goals than Hakan Çalhanoglu among the midfielders playing in the top five European leagues in 2023/24.
MKHITARYAN: "A TEAM FULL OF CHAMPIONS"
Henrikh Mkhitaryan, who was a dominant figure in Monza and provided the assist for Thuram's late goal, also spoke after the game: