Chaos as Fenerbahce players walk off pitch after Galatasaray goal one minute into cup final
The pair of Istanbul giants met at the Sanliurfa 11 Nisan Stadium but Fenerbahce fielded their Under 19 side in a huge protest.
The game was initially pencilled in for a meeting in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia back in December but was called off due to the host nation not approving of planned honouring of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the first president of Turkey.
In addition to fans having banners, players wanted to wear t-shirts with his face on it and when this wasn’t allowed the game was called off.
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The fixture was rearranged for Sunday but according to Goal, Fenerbahce were left furious as they have a Europa Conference League quarter-final against Olympiacos this Thursday.
Their request, which also included to have foreign officials, was not met and so they decided to field their youth team for the clash and let assistant manager Zeki Murat Gole take charge.
Mauro Icardi scored inside a minute, which led to Fenerbahce players walking off the pitch.
Galatasaray celebrated with fans and then began playing against their reserve side to ensure it wasn’t a complete waste of their time.
The boycott had been confirmed beforehand by Erol Bilecik, who told fans not to attend the game.
He also stated that they have requested to not compete in the Turkish Cup for the next two seasons.
As per a statement, Bilecik said: “We have decided not to participate in the Turkish Cup for 2 seasons starting from next season.
“We will make all necessary applications to the TFF immediately after the holiday. We have decided not to participate in the Turkish Cup for the next 2 seasons.”
Only recently Fenerbahce threatened to withdraw from the Turkish Super Lig after their players were attacked by Trabzonspor fans.
Michy Batshuayi was seen attempting to spin kick a fan, while Nigeria international Bright Osayi-Samuel appeared to punch a supporter who entered the field of play.