Our soccer super league has started, congratulations!

 Let me begin by reminding you of the following statements from my last article: As someone who loves soccer, and indeed every branch of sports, I believe that continuing the league is the wrong decision. Playing these games, especially in team sports and high-contact competitions, carries a significant risk.

I understand the continuation of non-contact sports like tennis, table tennis, and badminton, but in sports like soccer, basketball, and volleyball, where contact is common, God forbid, a single athlete being positive would affect everyone on the field. I don’t think there’s a testing mechanism that can reliably determine whether they’re positive or not. Sometimes, during the incubation period of the virus or during certain periods, someone who tests negative can test positive within a day or two. In that case, you’re putting at risk not only the 22 players who worked hard during the match, but also everyone on the bench.

In other words, the Turkish Basketball Federation made the right decision to cancel the leagues this year. In my opinion, the Turkish Soccer Federation should have made the same decision. While I personally believe Galatasaray is the closest contender for this year’s championship, and I personally long for it, I believe the decision should be made to cancel the leagues. What matters is human health; the rest is just a detail.

This year’s championship race is between Galatasaray, Trabzonspor, Başakşehir and Sivasspor.

The five teams’ cautious approach

While debate continues whether the leagues should be played or not, the vast majority said they should be due to financial concerns, while the other five teams approached the matter cautiously. Here are their statements:

Demir Grup Sivasspor: Manager Rıza Çalımbay said, “I think 12 June is too early for a return. We want the league to end. We really want to play and finish the league, but we don’t want it to happen so soon. The sooner the better. Even with the slightest risk, these games shouldn’t be played.”

İttifak Holding Konyaspor: The green-and-white club’s statement read, “Who will take responsibility for these grave incidents? The decision should be made by the technical staff, the players, and other employees who work tirelessly on the field. If games are to be played, a satisfactory solution must be found for the soccer family.”

MKE Ankaragücü: President Fatih Mert of the capital club, whose player Ricardo Faty tested positive for coronavirus, said, “I know this: players at many clubs don’t want to play. I’m following this from the media. Everyone has many questions. Playing the leagues seems difficult under these circumstances.”

Evkur Yeni Malatyaspor: President Adil Gevrek commented on the decision to return to the league: “We’re not saying the league shouldn’t start; we’re saying it should start at the right time. Not just a few clubs, but almost all the clubs are not keen on restarting the leagues during this period.”

HES Kablo Kayserispor: Vice President Mustafa Tokgöz stated that the Super League’s June start poses a significant risk. Tokgöz said, “Being told to play to the death, risking everyone’s health, is an unacceptable mistake.”

Leagues resumed despite all odds

While these discussions continued, the Turkish Soccer Federation (TFF) made its decision at the beginning of June. Following President Nihat Özdemir’s meeting with Health Minister Fahrettin Koca on 5 June, the Federation convened to make its final decision.

Following the meeting, Özdemir announced that the suspended soccer leagues would resume between 12 – 14 June. “With the support of our state,” Özdemir said, “we aim to complete the season,” adding, “We will complete our leagues in July. We will present the trophies on the field. We will host the Champions League final in August.”

The leagues resumed on 12 June, as planned, but a UEFA decision moved this year’s Champions League final to Lisbon. The Istanbul Final was also postponed to 2021. This means that this grand final will be played in Istanbul again next year.

Despite all the criticism surrounding health concerns, the leagues resumed last weekend. Erdoğan Toprak, a member of parliament for the opposition CHP, offered a different perspective on the leagues’ resumption amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Reacting to the leagues’ planned start on 12 June, Toprak, a CHP Istanbul MP, pointed out that betting companies were behind the decision, saying, “This decision is to compensate for the revenue loss from the privatized games of chance and betting, which were guaranteed an annual revenue of 9 billion to a company close to the government, as well as the damage suffered by beIN Sports, which holds the live broadcast rights for the Super League.”

None of us know the criteria behind these decisions, but from my perspective, I can’t say this decision makes much sense from a health perspective. Because, as I mentioned earlier, if one of the players tests positive for COVID-19, it would endanger everyone on the field. After all, we’re talking about a sports match involving contact.

We’ll see if the Soccer Federation, after completing this year behind closed doors, will allow games with fans next season. In 1918, during the Spanish Flu pandemic, they allowed masked spectators into stadiums. Here’s a photo taken around that time:

Of course, as someone who believes games should be canceled, I believe allowing spectators into games would be disastrous in a country like Turkey, a country with a culture that loves to share enthusiasm.

The blows Galatasaray suffered with the Pandemic

From the perspective of my favorite team, Galatasaray, I can say that this pandemic worked completely against us. With a fantastic start to the second half, we had 7 wins and 2 draws in 9 games, topping the league in every way, and heading for the championship. We were beating everyone in front of us and were playing the best soccer in the league at the time, by far.

Then COVID-19 hit. We had to play our Beşiktaş match behind closed doors. Moreover, the pandemic had just been officially announced, and all the players were very nervous about this crucial derby match. Then our coach contracted COVID-19 and couldn’t manage the team for perhaps a month. Galatasaray President Mustafa Cengiz narrowly escaped death.

We had regained momentum and regained momentum in the second half, but then the coronavirus struck, and the league was suspended for nearly three months. This break didn’t do us any good. The Çaykur Rizespor match showed that we had fallen far behind in this process. Furthermore, this match resulted in Muslera, who broke his leg, and Andone, who suffered a serious injury, being sidelined for extended periods. We witnessed terrible refereeing. The referee turned a blind eye to Çaykur Rizespor’s excessively harsh play. He didn’t blow his whistle to break the man who was clearly offside, which would have caused Muslera’s injury. He awarded us an unfair penalty and didn’t award ours. To give you a better idea, I’m sharing Fatih Terim’s interview after the match: https://www.instagram.com/tv/CBd5F4QH-Zc/?igshid=a0zdfutizphm

We had such faith, such a form, that only such a scenario could have cost us the championship. A globally ravaging disease would strike, Fatih Terim would contract it, our president, Mustafa Cengiz, would narrowly escape death, and Muslera would be injured and end the season. Nevertheless, our duty is to support our team no matter what.

Characters unbecoming of Turkish soccer

Another note about the president of Çaykur Rizespor. What’s his problem? He’s someone who lashes out every time Galatasaray beat Çaykur Rizespor, threatens them with a gun, and even intimidates them to the point of breaking their team’s leg. In my opinion, he’s completely unqualified to be the president of a soccer club. Last year, Emre Akbaba, a player as highly regarded as Muslera and whose game was truly impressive, broke his leg on Çaykur Rizespor’s field. So, is this a coincidence? Çaykur Rizespor president Hasan Kartal should be banned from Turkish soccer for his provocative behavior, his constant insults and threats, and his provocation of inciting his team to the point of breaking his leg. Otherwise, we will never make any progress in our soccer because of people like him.

A photo of Çaykur Rizespor president Hasan Kartal causing another fight.

I’d like to share some footage from the Çaykur Rizespor match to give you an idea:
https://www.instagram.com/p/CBd2b6WFDdC/?igshid=9jngjo041bvl

Similarly, Emre Belözoğlu once again demonstrated his “Emre” credibility during last week’s Trabzonspor Cup Match, receiving a red card while on the sidelines and forced to the locker room. It’s incomprehensible how they still can’t seem to fit this man into his role, how they’re portraying him as the big brother of Turkish soccer. This is precisely why we can’t make any progress. Because if Emre and others like him are held up as role models, we’re doomed. I hope that those who stand with Emre under all circumstances will put aside their sentimentality, put their hands on their consciences, and see the damage this player is doing to Fenerbahçe and Turkish soccer.

Here’s a video of Emre’s behavior during the Trabzonspor match (just look at his gaze and demeanor; even those who don’t know him can see the psychological delusion he’s in): https://www.instagram.com/p/CBgYFYAlIvz/?igshid=16z8z9k8vg155

In my opinion, the players who should be taken as role models in Turkish soccer are Galatasaray’s Metin Oktay, Tugay Kerimoğlu, and Fernando Muslera. Fenerbahçe’s Lefter Küçükandonyadis and Oğuz Çetin, and Beşiktaş’s Rıza Çalımbay and Metin Tekin.

Mock-up Fans and Kobe Bryant

One of the most interesting developments last weekend was the installation of mock-up fans at games played behind closed doors. Games played behind closed doors are truly unpleasant. We all endure it. While the presence of mock-up fans provides a small source of motivation for the home team, it’s certainly not enough. Incidentally, as a devoted basketball fan, I was deeply moved by the presence of Kobe Bryant, who came to Istanbul to play for Galatasaray and tragically died in a helicopter crash earlier this year, among the mock-up fans.

My dream is for Galatasaray to win the championship again this year, which I think is still possible. The league isn’t over yet, and we’ll face two rivals on the way to the championship. If Galatasaray doesn’t win the championship, I hope Trabzonspor wins as well, since my mother’s side is from Trabzon. I also have great sympathy for Okan Buruk and believe he should be Galatasaray’s manager after Fatih Terim, but for now, I’ll be choosing Galatasaray and Trabzonspor for the championship.

Here’s a motivational video about Galatasaray’s championship: https://www.instagram.com/p/CBlHUy9p_Xy/?igshid=3d395p2y9p3w

In conclusion, although we all miss soccer, the joy of soccer, or any competition, has been lost this year. Furthermore, as I mentioned before, continuing contact sports in this environment poses a significant risk. I wish all competitions had been canceled until a definitive cure for COVID-19 is found.

Considerations like financial concerns and freedom to travel are important, but health comes first.