Fenerbahce Walk Off After 1 Minute, Concede Cup Final to Galatasaray: Football Chaos
Fenerbahce’s players walked off the pitch after just one minute of the Turkish Super Cup final against Galatasaray, who were then awarded the trophy as a result. This move seemed to be a protest by Fenerbahce, as they fielded a team of under-19 players for the match in Sanliurfa. Mauro Icardi opened the scoring for Galatasaray inside the first minute before Fenerbahce’s players left the pitch, leading to the game being abandoned. Galatasaray was then confirmed as Turkish Super Cup champions and celebrated in front of their fans in the stadium.
It was reported before the match that Fenerbahce had planned to field a team entirely comprised of youth players as a protest against the Turkish Football Federation. They had requested a postponement of the match due to their Europa Conference League quarter-final against Olympiacos on Thursday. The fixture was initially scheduled to be played in Saudi Arabia in December but was called off following a disagreement between the clubs and the host nation’s authorities. Galatasaray was awarded the trophy after the match was abandoned.
The players reportedly wanted to wear shirts bearing the name of national icon Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, but the Saudi authorities would not allow it. Fenerbahce was also said to be frustrated over the handling of a riot during last month’s game against Trabzonspor, which saw their players attacked by rival fans. The club’s deputy president, Erol Bilecik, revealed earlier in the week the plan to field an under-19 side against Galatasaray and urged fans not to travel or expect the match to be played out in full. He emphasized that the ‘A’ team would not participate and the match would not be a 90-minute one.
