Yakin spent arguably the best years of his career playing for his hometown club FC Basel, where he was the defensive linchpin, captain and libero of a team which enjoyed domestic and relative European success. He won the Swiss Super League on five occasions, and the Swiss Cup three times. He recalls the 2002–03 Champions League second leg qualifying match on 28 August 2002 against Celtic in St. Jakob-Park as the "match of his life". Basel won the game 2–0, with Yakin scoring the second goal in the 22 minute as Basel qualified 3–3 on the away goals rule for the 2002–03 UEFA Champions League group stage. Although his spells abroad were not wholly successful, he was widely regarded as one of Swiss football's finest products, frequently being linked with some of the biggest clubs in Europe. In 2003, he played in the FIFA "Match against Poverty" as part of a star-studded ensemble showcasing the world's best players. During his playing career, Yakin was capped 49 times for the Switzerland national team, representing his country at UEFA Euro 2004.
On 15 October 2012, Yakin was appointed as the new manager of FC Basel. Under his management, Basel won twice, home and away, against Chelsea in the 2013–14 Champions Leaguegroup stage. He praised the supporters in the stadium, saying that they pushed the team to win through the 90 minutes. He was also delighted to have received praise from then Chelsea manager José Mourinho. On 17 May 2014, FC Basel announced Yakin was no longer with the club after he guided them to two domestic titles in as many years.
On 16 June 2014, Yakin was appointed as manager of Russian Premier League side Spartak Moscow. According to Russian media, the deal was a long-term contract with Yakin earning an annual salary of 1.6 million euros. On 30 May 2015, after only one season with the club, his contract with the club was terminated after a mutual agreement.
Return to FC Schaffhausen
On 17 June 2019 it was confirmed, that Yakin had returned to FC Schaffhausen as their new manager having left FC Sion previously that year.
Coaching record
Personal life
Murat Yakin is the elder brother of Hakan Yakin, who was also a professional footballer with successful stints at Grasshoppers, Basel, and BSC Young Boys and represented Switzerland at international level also. His parents are from Turkey.
