In a shocking series of events, the president of the Turkish soccer club Ankaragucu has been arrested by police. The whole soccer world was shocked by what took place at the end of the Turkish league match between Ankaragucu and Rizespor. With the soccer fans uniting to condemn Ankaragucu’s president, the Internet has been set ablaze after yesterday’s incident.
Ankaragucu’s Super Lig clash against Rizespor ended in a 1-1 draw with Adolfo Gaich scoring the late equalizer for Rizespor. However, the match ended on a rather ugly note after Ankaragucu’s president Faruk Koca assaulted the match referee. Halil Umut Meler, the referee, was struck by Koca on his face and the former ended up lying on the flower.
Meler was also kicked several times in his face and his body by some other people after Koca’s initial assault. Meler, who’s a UEFA Elite member and a FIFA-listed referee, also revealed that Koca had threatened to kill him. Soon after the incident, the Turkish Football Federation (TFF) suspended all leagues and Koca was also taken into custody by the Turkish police.
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Despite the unanimous support for Halil Meler, some soccer fans have supported Koca’s actions. One user even said, “It’s a shame but he deserved. This season the league has been blowing biased whistles since the beginning.”
However, most of the fans rebuked Koca’s actions and expressed support for Meler. Currently, Meler has been admitted to Acibadem Hospital. The referee has reportedly suffered a bleed in his eyes and a fracture on his face, but the hospital has ruled out any damage to Meler’s brain.
Turkish President condemns Ankaragucu president for assaulting Halil Meler
Meanwhile, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has expressed his support for Halil Meler after the latter was assaulted by Ankaragucu president Faruk Koca. He stated on his X (formerly known as Twitter) account. He wrote, “Sports means peace and brotherhood. Sport is incompatible with violence. We will never allow violence to take place in Turkish sports.“
Referee Halil Umut Mele is comforted by Turkey’s president Recep Tayyip Erdogan while he recovers in hospital after being punched by Ankaragucu president Faruk Koca. pic.twitter.com/Dbdmd85f16
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) December 12, 2023
Erdogan also condemned Faruk Koca’s actions and wished Halil Meler a speedy recovery. The Turkish president also went to visit Meler at the hospital. On the other hand, Koca has denied causing any injury to Halil Meler denied the accusations.
In addition to this, the Ankaragucu president even blamed Meler for the incident for his provocative and wrongful decisions during the match against Rizespor.
