When resilience meets ambition: How Kaleemullah Khan Jr, 15, is chasing his European dream
The Pishin-born teenager, who authored a smashing hat-trick for Pakistan on his international debut, is eyeing a contract with Turkish Super Lig club Karagümrük
Footballers Kaleemullah Khan Junior and Saadullah are on a mission in Turkey; one is just 15 years old, and the other is 31.
They are siblings with a huge gap between them, but they share the same dream.
Their current goal is to secure a contract for Kaleemullah with Turkish top-flight club Fatih Karagümrük S.K.
But they are on the clock for the 10-day trials that began on March 27, 2026, with the hope of creating history by this coming week.
It will be a feat that can open doors for Pakistani talent at the UEFA level and, more importantly, change Kaleemullah’s life forever.
Kaleemullah became all the rage in November 2025 when he became the first Pakistani footballer to author an international hat-trick. He did it at the Asian Football Confederation Asian U17 Cup qualifiers against Guam, and it was also his international debut.
You can watch his hat-trick here
This performance is a testament to the nurture and care Saadullah has put in his brothers development as a player.
And if Kaleemullah manages to get the contract at a Super Lig club it will become a key moment for home-grown Pakistani talent.
This is ultimately a story of two players instead of one.
“Everything in Turkey is so different from what we are used to seeing in Pakistan,” Kaleemullah told Lost on the Desk on Sunday night from Istanbul right before starting his trial at Karagümrük.
“I just want to say that it is a huge opportunity, and I have worked very hard for this, and if we succeed, it will open the doors for other Pakistani players too.”
Kaleemullah travelled with his brother and official guardian, Saadullah, who assured the teenager trains each day and remains focused on his goal.
Even on their second day in Istanbul, Saadullah was looking for spots for Kaleemullah to train for a bit before the trails began the next day.
This eagerness to prepare is a vignette of the dedication and hopes riding on the time they have in Turkey.
Istanbul calling
FIFA-Licensed agent Orbis Sports Management is representing him.
Meanwhile, Saadullah arranged the tour to Turkey, while 35 percent support came from the Government of Balochistan, he explained, through sponsorship for Kaleemullah.
However, the invitation letter came to Kaleemullah through Hasham Ashraf, who is based in the UK.
“It is Allah’s blessing, really, that I am here, and I understand the hard work that went behind the scenes. I can only thank Hasham Ashraf and Saadullah bhai for availing this opportunity for me.”
Kaleem’s most striking characteristic is his sense of responsibility towards all the people who have supported him in his football journey.
It is a quality often found in people who mature faster than their peers, who have seen struggle and inherently understand the cost of dreaming big despite their circumstances, where resources and opportunities are limited and failing is not an option.
The teenager is humble enough to keep thanking his mentors, but opportunities like trials at a Super Lig club heavily depend on his talent and ability to perform well under pressure, as he did for Pakistan on his debut.
That particular match against Guam not only saw Kaleemullah score goals, but he also managed two assists.
It was a match that primarily became memorable because of the way Kaleemullah performed.
In fact, most Pakistanis may not have seen the entire match, but they have seen the clips of the goals that the boy from an underdeveloped village of Pishin, Balochistan, had scored.
“I remember I just wanted to give it my all, it was my one chance to show what I could do, I had been on the bench for the entire tournament,” Kaleemullah recalled what was on his mind during that match.
“I kept thinking about all the people, my brother, my family, my coach, my friends, my teammates, everyone. When I stepped on the field for the first time, I wanted to keep my mind calm, and I was just looking for opportunities to score. I wanted to make sure that I was not a letdown in any way.”
The striker said that his priority was to play for the team, but at the same time, he was hungry to leave his mark on the field that would consequently ensure progress in his career.
“I was on the bench for four matches, and when I finally got the chance to play in the fifth match, there was no way I was going to squander it.”
Kaleemulallh also revealed that he confronted his nerves or any pressure that he felt by having faith in his ability to just enjoy the game and stay present in the moment.
He believes that confidence is the key, and one must believe that one can get everything they want through effort and persistence.
“I think confidence is everything; we need confidence in our ability that we can achieve everything we put our mind to. There should be no room for doubt,” explained Kaleemullah, who is chasing a dream to play at the UEFA Champions League one day.
His confidence emanated from the fact that he had proven to be a valuable talent at the National circuit at first.
Last year, he emerged as the top scorer with eight goals at the U16 national championship for Pakistan Army.
It was a performance that led him to the Pakistan National U17 team trials.
Kaleemullah has been progressing steadily from the national to the international level.
This is the same kind of mentality that Kaleemullah is hoping to carry to his trials.
It is his first foray into international trials, and he will be drawing the inspiration from the reaction he received after the AFC U16 Asian Cup qualifiers.
“I remember the feedback I got,everyone was proud of me, I want to make people proud through my game, it is a great feeling to be able to do that,” added Kaleemullah, who idolises the former Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema.
But when asked what makes him love football so much that he is willing to commit to a grueling professional career at such a young age, he promptly replies, “Ever since I can remember, I have played football; it is the most consistent thing in my life.”
The making of a footballer
This answer reflects the amount of work Saadullah has put into Kaleemullah’s upbringing in the absence of their father who passed away in 2014 when Kaleem was hardly three years old.
Even for the trip to Turkey with Kaleemullah, Saadullah had to get court-attested documents to become an official guardian.
The legal process took place during the month of Ramadan before they headed to Istanbul in March.
“Kaleemullah is my youngest brother; we are six brothers altogether. I had made my international debut for the Pakistan U19 team in 2009, it was against Iran, and Kaleemullah was born just two years after that,” said Saadullah with affection in his voice and pride in his words.
“I just feel so lucky to be his brother. It is because of him that I am in Turkey as well, because of his talent and performance. Allah has been kind to us.
“I am sure that he will get that contract. I am hoping for that contract to be on the professional side for the club instead of the junior team. It would be such an achievement for Kaleemullah to be 15 and sign a professional contract. I am just extremely proud of him.”
Saadullah’s own career was ruined in a decade of instability due to political morass at the Pakistan Football Federation, which resulted in several bans from FIFA from 2015 to 2025 because of third-party interference.
The FIFA-appointed Normalisation Committee, which was installed in 2019 and remained controversial throughout its tenure with several leadership changes, finally managed to hold elections last year.
But the infighting among the officials killed the dreams, careers, and opportunities of talented youths like Saadullah, who proved their mettle in not only national but also international football despite financial, systemic, and infrastructural challenges.
Saadullah played in Hungary and the Maldives after representing Pakistan at the AFC Presidents Club with KRL in 2012 and 2014, and was even named among one of the most valuable players at the South Asian Football Federation Championship in the past.
“My playing years went to waste, and after a point, one starts to look for other paths. I studied further, and I also got a UEFA B License as a coach,” said Saadullah.
However, he said that even during his playing years, he noticed a special interest in Kaleemullah’s eyes for the game.
“Throughout my football journey, I made sure that I kept Kaleemullah engaged with the sport with me because I saw how he would tag along with me to every match I played locally, he loved to wear my kits, and I felt I could help him grow into a professional footballer,” explained the former K-Electric player.
So far Saadullah and Kaleemullah’s careers have remained intertwined even if they are playing against each other in local events.
In 2025, Kaleemullah played for Combined Hazara FC against a team managed by Saadullah, Spartax FC, in the Balochistan Chief Minister Gold Club, where he scored two goals in two matches that helped the team in clutch moments.
“He loved football even as an infant. While he was growing up, I made sure that I created an environment that could mold him into a good footballer. I got him a treadmill and other gym equipment at our house in Pishin, which is so far away from the city, it is a backward area without modern amenities, but I made sure that I could train to stay fit, and Kaleemullah gets what he needs to train as well.”
Great things happen when resilience meets ambition
Saadullah was a rare talent from Pishin; he was the first one from the area to emerge as a top player among those coming from far more competitive places like Chaman in Balochistan or at the national level.
“There was no one to guide me. I felt alone, and there was always this huge gap in knowledge and facilities, but when I saw how Kaleemullah wanted to play, I decided that I could be that mentor for him. And I felt like it was the perfect time when Kaleem was only four or five to start playing football with him. I think it was great because I got a very late start to the game, I never even played street football, per se. So starting kids early always benefits their game and technique.
“I also thought it was great that football from Pishin would continue to get representation at the national and international level after me through Kaleemullah,” reflected Saad from a perspective of a professional coach and a teacher.
He recalled how painful it was to send a nine-year-old Kaleemullah away to Islamabad, where the youngling joined POPO FC.
“I still remember when I put nine-year-old Kaleem in the Al Mustafa Coach (bus) that took him to Islamabad. Before this Kaleem never travelled alone, but I told him that he needed to go to Islamabad and find the club, that was his first test, he needed to go away from home and train among other players and prove himself, or else he would not become a professional footballer,” said Saad, who had received training at national camps from POPO FC coach Shahzad Anwar.
Saadullah said that POPO FC also took care of the education of its players, and mostly he trusted Anwar with his younger brother.
But the sacrifices were necessary to train, as Saadullah believes that players need to learn discipline away from home, and for him, his task was to keep Kaleemullah motivated during tough times.
“As an older brother, it has always been my job to make sure Kaleem doesn’t get distracted from his games and stays motivated. Sometimes he would cal in distress to complain about his coaches being strict or someone mistreating him. I had to toughen up to toughen him up at times; I had to ask him to practice patience and learn from his mistakes.
“One needs to be strict with kids like that, even before coming to Turkey for example, I was making sure that Kaleem was training, even on two hours worth of sleep in Ramadan, because one needs to commit, and professional football is more than just doing the basic techniques very well, it is about having a strong mentality and going the extra mile when others don’t,” said Saadullah.
Discipline is everything
While they are in Turkey, Saadullah constantly passes on his wisdom to Kaleem and reminds him to remain ambitious for opportunities at top clubs in Europe and not become content or comfortable at any stage of his career.
“My own football journey came to a halting end because of political issues and now my age is against me, so I can’t play, but now I think Kaleem has a chance to play for top clubs, so I am telling him to only focus on football training, live a simple life without getting distracted by irrelevant things.
“I tell him to be ambitious and not be content with what he has, footballers have a limited time to achieve their dreams,” said Saadullah and Kaleem agreed with him on it, understanding that to become successful he will need leadership skills, discipline, and patience.
On a parting note, Kaleemullah and Saadullah have only one request for the people: “Pray for our success and support us in this endeavor.
“It is a good and big opportunity for a Pakistan-based international footballer. We need prayers and love as we attempt to achieve what looks like an impossible task right now. This will change Pakistani football, positively, for good.”
Next tournament for Kaleemullah
On his return from Turkey, Kaleemullah will join the Pakistan U16 team to participate in the UEFA U16 Development Tournament in Kazakhstan.
The event will take place from April 24 to 30 and will feature teams from Pakistan, Azerbaijan, Russia, and hosts Kazakhstan.
-Fin-