Orhan Kaynak (1 March 1970, Adana – 10 March 2026, Trabzon) was a Turkish former professional footballer and football coach. He played as a forward throughout his youth and active career, and after retiring from playing, he took on assistant coaching and head coaching roles with various clubs. During his playing years, he was known by the nickname “Küçük Orhan” to distinguish him from another footballer in the Trabzonspor squad with a similar name.

Born on 1 March 1970 in the village of Soysallı, district of Ceyhan, Adana, he was the youngest of eight children of farmer and grocer Hakkı Kaynak and homemaker Yeter Kaynak. His family belonged to the Kocadurmuşlar lineage, a branch of which adopted the surname “Kaynak” following the Surname Law. All male members of the family, except his sister Ayten Menekşe and elder brother Cengiz Kaynak, became professional footballers and are collectively known in Turkish sports history as the “Kaynak brothers” — Reşit, Kayhan, İrfan, İlhan, Ayhan, and Orhan. In recognition of the family’s football legacy and contributions to Adana sports, a sports facility named the “Kayhan Kaynak Kardeşleri Stadyumu” was built in the Yüreğir district. Orhan Kaynak began playing football in neighborhood matches and laid the foundations of his career after joining the youth academy of Adanaspor with the support of his brothers.

Orhan Kaynak signed his first professional contract with Adanaspor at the start of the 1987–1988 season and was promoted to the first team. In his debut season, he helped the club win the 1. Lig title and gain promotion to the Süper Lig, where he played for three consecutive seasons wearing the Adanaspor jersey. In the 1991–1992 season, he transferred to Samsunspor and, the following season, helped the team win the 1. Lig championship and return to the Süper Lig. Alongside Ertuğrul Sağlam and Bünyamin Kubat, he formed one of the league’s most notable attacking trios.

^{Trabzonspor Football Team (Standing Left to Right): Abdullah Ercan, Hami Mandıralı, Ogün Temizkanoğlu, Nihat Tumkaya, Orhan Kaynak, Sitting Left to Right: Orhan Cıkrıkçı, Ünal Karaman, Hamdi Aslan, Kemal Serdar, Lemi Çelik (AA)}

In the 1993–1994 season, Kaynak transferred to Trabzonspor. To avoid confusion with fellow player Orhan Çıkırıkçı, he adopted the nickname “Küçük Orhan,” which he retained for the remainder of his career. The 1994–1995 season under head coach Şenol Güneş marked his most prolific period: he scored 14 goals in 31 league matches and added four goals in six Turkish Cup appearances, becoming joint top scorer of the competition alongside teammate Şota Arveladze and helping Trabzonspor win the cup. He also gained international recognition by scoring in both legs of Trabzonspor’s UEFA Cup matches against English side Aston Villa.

Following his performances at Trabzonspor, Kaynak transferred to Beşiktaş in 1995 at the request of then-head coach Christoph Daum. He later moved to Kocaelispor in the 1997–1998 season and then to Greece’s Skoda İskeçe in 2001. After his experience abroad, he returned to Türkiye and played for İstanbul Büyükşehir Belediyespor, Kayseri Erciyesspor, Akçaabat Sebatspor, and returned again to Kocaelispor. He concluded his active playing career after a final season with Sarıyer in 2006–2007. On the international stage, he earned six caps for the Türkiye U-21 team and scored one goal.

After retiring from football, Kaynak began his coaching career in the 2008–2009 season as assistant coach at Eskişehirspor under his former teammate Rıza Çalımbay. He continued as assistant coach alongside Çalımbay at Sivasspor during the 2010–2013 and 2014–2015 seasons, and at Çaykur Rizespor during the 2013–2014 season. In 2014, he served as assistant to Hami Mandıralı at Trabzonspor, and in 2017, he assisted various technical staff members at Adana Demirspor. As a head coach, he managed Sarıyer, Elazığspor, and Boluspor. At the time of his death, Kaynak was serving as assistant to head coach Fatih Tekke at Trabzonspor, a position he had held since signing a contract on 12 March 2025.

^{Orhan Kaynak as head coach of Sivasspor (AA)}

Orhan Kaynak married Aynur Süleyman (Kaynak), whom he became engaged to during his time at Beşiktaş. The couple had two children: a son named Egehan and a daughter named Minel Naz Kaynak. Their daughter, Minel Naz Kaynak, won the national title in a youth tennis tournament in September 2024.

On 10 March 2026, while having lunch at Trabzonspor’s Mehmet Ali Yılmaz Facilities, where he was employed, Kaynak suddenly collapsed. After initial medical assistance at the facility, he was transported to Karadeniz Technical University (KTÜ) Farabi Hospital, where all medical interventions failed. He died at the age of 56 from a heart attack. Following the news of his death, Trabzonspor Vice President Zeyyat Kafkas, head coach Fatih Tekke, and players Ozan Tufan and Okay Yokuşlu visited the hospital to pay their respects.

Orhan Kaynak’s death brought renewed attention to the genetic heart conditions affecting his family. In addition to their mother, several of his professional footballer brothers had previously died of heart attacks: İrfan Kaynak in 1992 (aged 36), Kayhan Kaynak in 1994 (aged 34), Reşit Kaynak in 1999 (aged 46), and İlhan Kaynak in 2021 (aged 62). With Orhan’s passing, the number of brothers in the family who died from the same condition reached five. In the aftermath of his death, condolences were issued by the Ministry of Youth and Sports, led by Minister Osman Aşkın Bak, and by the Turkish Football Federation, as well as by the clubs Beşiktaş, Fenerbahçe, Galatasaray, and Trabzonspor.