Officials at Turkish soccer club Fenerbahce may soon elect to officially defect from the Turkish Super Lig. The league is the top division in Turkey and the Yellow Canaries have won the title 19 times in their illustrious history. Only rival Galatasaray has managed to win more top-flight trophies than Fenerbahce.
The news comes as violence struck the club’s postgame celebrations after a recent league victory. Fenerbahce narrowly edged Trabzonspor on Sunday thanks to a late goal from Michy Batshuayi. Following the final whistle, Fenerbahce players were attacked by select Trabzonspor fans on the pitch.
Authorities inside Papara Park failed to control the situation, which saw several supporters fight with the traveling Fenerbahce players. After the melee finally calmed down, a dozen fans were ultimately arrested for their roles in the incident.
Fener President says club is ready to be sent to lower levels of Turkish soccer
Following the situation, Fenerbahce president Ali Koç that a special meeting would take place to vote on the club potentially leaving the Süper Lig. According to the executive, the assembly is set to be held on Tuesday, April 2. However, an additional meeting will take place a week later should a majority decision not be reached.
“We need to cut our own ties because this will continue like this,” Koç proclaimed in a statement. “We would like to thank our President and Ministers for their intervention after the events took place yesterday. God bless them, they intervened in every process after the events and made us feel comfortable.”
“We will not accept this treatment in our own country. We have said many times that we do not. Again and again, we shout out what is happening in Turkish football. We shout loudly about betting, match-fixing, unfair competition, and referees. You see the point where things have come. We will now cut our ties ourselves.”
Koç then went on to claim that he is ready to place the team in the lower levels of Turkish soccer. “If necessary, we will be relegated to a lower league,” continued Koç .
“When you make this decision, relegation to a lower league is already in question. Because we will die one day rather than die every day, but we have to save our future. We’ll play for a year and leave, but everyone will come to their senses and that’s enough. That’s literally enough.”
Turkish Super Lig officials will not want to lose Fenerbahce
The incident at the recent Fenerbahce match comes just three months after Ankaragucu president Faruk Koca punched a Süper Lig referee. The referee needed to go to the hospital after the assault. Fortunately, the hospital discharged him the following day. League officials briefly suspended play due to the embarrassing event.
Fenerbahce’s president is willing to drop down to the lower leagues of the country’s soccer pyramid. Yet, it is unclear if board members will pass this on a vote. The club is also pondering the possibility of jumping ship to a neighboring country’s top-flight competition.
Nevertheless, Süper Lig officials will certainly not want to see Fenerbahce leave the division. After all, the club’s massive rivalry with Galatasaray is essentially a significant driving force for the teams and the league.
The Intercontinental Derby between the two sides is the most important matchup in Turkish soccer. It is comparable inside the nation to the Old Firm fixture between Celtic and Rangers in Scotland.
PHOTOS: IMAGO.
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