Learn Turkish: Savunmacı oyuncu, çapraz bir hamleden yana karar verdi. - The defensive player decided in favor of a diagonal move.

While both can translate to "decided on a move," the ablative + yana emphasizes preference. Hamleye karar verdi simply states the final choice, whereas hamleden yana karar verdi means they decided in favor of or sided with that move, implying they weighed multiple options before taking a stance.

Could we say savunma oyuncusu instead of savunmacı oyuncu?

Yes! Savunma oyuncusu is a standard noun compound meaning "defense player." By adding the -cı suffix to make savunmacı (defender) and using it as an adjective before oyuncu, the sentence highlights the player's active role or characteristic. Both are very common in sports contexts.

Just to review, why is bir placed between the adjective and the noun in çapraz bir hamleden?

In Turkish, when a noun has both a descriptive adjective and the indefinite article bir (a/an), the standard order is Adjective + bir + Noun. If you were to say bir çapraz hamle, it would sound like you are emphasizing the number: "one diagonal move."

Does hamle mean "move" in a general physical sense, like walking?