The duel for the Turkish Super Cup between Fenerbahce and Galatasaray Istanbul had barely kicked off when the next scandal shook crisis-plagued Turkish football. Less than a minute had been played when Fenerbahce conceded the quick 0-1 by Mauro Icardi. The team, which only consisted of young players, suddenly left the field again and thus provoked the match being abandoned. With the planned protest action, the club increased the pressure enormously in the dispute with the Turkish association TFT – and once again caused negative headlines around the world.
The Spanish sports newspaper Marca wrote of an “escalation in Turkey” and “surreal images.” The British one Daily Mail reported “bizarre scenes”, and there was also in Italy Gazzetta dello Sport There was talk of “chaos” and a “sensational gesture”.
Fenerbahce was forced to take this bizarre action because of supposedly unfair treatment. The club had asked for a foreign referee for the duel, but that didn’t happen. The Super Cup, which was originally supposed to take place in Saudi Arabia at the end of December but was canceled, was also not postponed in view of the Conference League quarter-finals on Thursday at Olympiacos Piraeus. Before the game, Fenerbahce President Ali Koc said: “It is time for the clocks to be turned back in Turkish football.” Koc also denounced that there has been an “occult network in Turkish football” for years that “determines the course of the championship through the referees.”
The protest at the Supercup final shows how messed up the situation is now. The last time there was a scandal at Trabzonspor was in March, when violent supporters of the hosts attacked Fenerbahce players after the late 3-2 defeat. In December, Ankaragücü President Faruk Koca broke a referee’s cheekbone with a punch, and operations in the Süper Lig were suspended. Almost a week later, the president of Istanbulspor caused the game to be canceled due to an alleged wrong decision.
Given the events of the past few months, it is rather questionable whether the last seven match days of the Süper Lig will pass without incident. Galatasaray will probably be awarded the Supercup at the Green Table.