In yet another black eye for Turkish football, Galatasaray were crowned as champions of the Turkish Super Cup after Fenerbahce walked off the field a minute into the contest. The Super Cup was already tainted since Fenerbahce fielded a team that was composed of their U-19 squad.
Fenerbahce is protesting the date the Super Cup took place, the date was moved twice before eventually settling on April 7th. Fenerbahce, who are in the Conference League and are slated to play Greek side Olympiacos on Thursday in the quarter-final, wanted the proper time to prepare for said match.
When the match was not moved by the Turkish Federation, Fenerbahce as an institution decided to field U-19 players to immediately leave the pitch in protest. After Mauro Icardi scored Galatasaray’s first goal in 50 seconds, the teenagers stormed off the field, eventually the match was abandoned, and Galatasaray was declared the 3-0 winners and new Super Cup champions.
Aftermath of Fenerbahce – Galatasaray debacle
When left alone on the field Galatasaray, in an effort to calm the crowd, played among themselves so the paying customers could see some soccer.
Fenerbahce on the other hand have requested to not compete in the Turkish Super Cup for the next two seasons.
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Fenerbahce president Yildirim Ali Koc issued a statement: “Our rebellion today, our stance in the Super Cup, is not only about the date of the match or what happened in the last away match.
“It is time for a ‘reset’ for Turkish football. We are in a period when the swamp must be drained, and Turkish football must rebuild itself. There is no need to reinvent the wheel.
Fenerbahce Sports Club, protesting the Turkish Football Federation, fielded a youth team for the Turkish Super Cup match. In the 1st minute of the match, after Galatasaray scored a goal, the young Fenerbahce players did not return for the kickoff and went to the dressing room.
“I hope that the justified rebellions of our club and the actions we decided to take out of necessity will ignite the cleansing process that needs to be done.
“This is the time when impartiality, fair competition and sporting ethics must come to the fore.”
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This incident follows Fenerbahce’s stance to withdraw from the Turkish Super Lig after Trabzonspor fans invaded the pitch and attacked their players on March 17 of this year.
