Cem made his first appearance in the first team squad when he was on the bench at Dens Park. He recently spoke to RedMatchday:

During the summer Aberdeen signed youngster Cem Felek.

Cem initially came over to Aberdeen towards the end of last season and impressed everyone. The 18-year-old
was on trial at Pittodrie and scored in the 5-5 friendly draw with Cove Rangers. The attacking midfielder was born in Buchen in Germany and played for VfL Bochum U19s. He also had a spell at Eintracht Frankfurt where he played for their U17 side and has represented Azerbaijan at U19 level.

Cem is a player is with a tremendous amount of skill and technical ability as he proved when he scored a superb free kick for the U20s in their 5-4 victory over Kilmarnock, well worth a watch on RedTV! He is also a very interesting person, as we discovered. First of all, we asked him how he was settling into life in the North East of Scotland.

“It is not easy because I am so far away from home and I miss my family, but I am really enjoying my time here and I am learning a lot. I really like Aberdeen as a city and I really like the club. It is a very special place.

“I really like the people. It is very different from Germany. Everybody has made me very welcome and it feels like home already. It is a different situation to what I was used to. All the players and staff mix, it is like one big family. I stay with Kalvin Orsi. He is a great guy and helped me settle in. Shay Logan also looks after me. I believe if you are nice to other people, they will give it back.

“I was born in Germany in Bochen and I played for a small team there for seven years before I was transferred to Frankfurt and then I was there five years. I moved to Bochen for one year and now I am here in Aberdeen. I have always travelled a lot. I was involved with the Turkish national teams when I was younger and more recently the Azerbaijan team.

“As I was born in Germany, I can say I am German but my parents are from Turkey so I feel Turkish as well. Although my parents are Turkish, I have members of my family who are from Azerbaijan so that is why I qualify to play for them. I am not more passionate about one country or the other. I feel like I am an international citizen.

“I am Turkish so I speak Turkish, I learned Azerbaijani as I play in their national team, I speak German, Spanish a little bit and English. As well as the odd bit of Scottish! I am picking up a few words and phrases from the boys in the dressing room. Some of the boys with Glasgow accents were a little bit hard to understand but I am getting used to them now.

“It is hard being away from your family. But if you want to make it as a professional player, you have to make difficult decisions. You have to make sacrifices. You have to be strong. I really care about my family and I take care of them. I really love and miss my little brother but I know one day we will all be together again.

“When I left school, I was still 16. My teachers then told me I was born to be a footballer but I had to make a decision. I really liked school, but I realised I had to stop and commit myself to football. I used to do my own private training in the morning to make me faster and stronger and I feel the benefit for that now.

“In my career, I have mainly played as a right winger. I have also played on the left wing and also up front as a striker. From when I started to play football as a young boy to now I have scored something like 1,700 goals in my career. I keep a count of them all! I take a note of them all. Scoring any goal is such a special feeling. I scored in my first friendly game when I came over on trial last season, I then scored in the first preseason game against Huntly. My first goal for the U20s came last week against Kilmarnock when I scored a free-kick to win the game. So I think my tally is now 1,703!

“When I was a boy, I supported Liverpool and I like Real Madrid also. Ronaldo is absolutely my favourite player. He is a role model and someone I look up to. He has a very different lifestyle and has been very successful. He is a very good professional and works so hard at his game. I just enjoy how he plays the game. I hope one day I will be a little bit like him.

“Scottish football is different to what I am used to. German football is more technical. The game in Scotland, it is very quick. It is quite physical and everything happens so quickly. You have to be strong. The first time I came over it was quite hard for me but I knew I could adjust. I knew I would work hard and adapt. It does take time but that is normal for anybody coming over to play in this country, no matter at what level. I am still young and I know I have to learn a lot of things. I know I have to work hard in the gym and on the training pitch. All the coaches are very good with me. I really enjoy the training.

“There was pressure on me when I came over on the trial last season because I was so desperate to do well. However I just told myself to relax and enjoy the experience. I knew that if I could show what I could do it would be enough. I am here to impress everyone but I have to impress myself first of all. I know I can do it. The main thing I have to do is work hard. I also have to learn from mistakes and listen to my coaches.

“My ambition is to play for the first team. It is a big journey for me and it will take time but I have the belief that I will play for the Aberdeen first team one day.

“I really love football. That is the most important thing. If you love what you do and have passion then you can achieve anything. You can do it.

“If you like to work hard, then you are in a good place here. That is why I am here. I hope people enjoy watching me play football. I just need to keep learning and working hard and then my dreams will come true.”

We all wish Cem well during his career at Pittodrie. He certainly someone who deserves to be successful in the game.

(interview copyright RedMatchday Magazine)