Turkish Football Federation President Mehmet Büyükekşi made a statement about what happened after the Ankaragücü – Çaykur Rizespor match.
HIGHLIGHTS FROM MEHMET BÜYÜKEKŞİ’S STATEMENTS ARE AS FOLLOWS:
Our main mission is to keep football first and protect it as an area where all stakeholders feel safe. There is no room for violence in this attitude. What happened in the Ankaragücü – Rizespor match is completely unacceptable. We remind that we will have zero tolerance in any such incident on or off the field, and that we will not allow attacks or disproportionate pressure on our referees, who are an important part of the game.
“WE ARE A REFEREE THAT WE ARE PROUD OF”
Halil Umut Meler is a referee we are proud of. A good family man, a good person. Nothing says more today than the photo of our referee on the ground being brutally kicked.
“I THANK OUR MR. PRESIDENT”
In this process, I would like to express our gratitude to our President. I would like to thank our Minister of Youth and Sports, our Minister of Internal Affairs and our Minister of Justice. TFF will also take its place in making and implementing the necessary changes in Law 6222.
“PFDK WILL ANNOUNCE ITS DECISION ON THURSDAY”
Supreme Turkish justice has done what is necessary for those responsible for the incident. Our legal consultancy did what we, as TFF, should have done yesterday. PFDK will also announce its decision on Thursday. We plan to impose additional sanctions in addition to deprivation of rights and fines to prevent such situations from recurring.
“LEAGUES WILL START ON DECEMBER 19”
All leagues will restart on Tuesday, December 19. We will play the matches that should be played this weekend on January 10. The schedule of matches in the lower leagues will also be published on our website. The league will continue on its normal schedule next week.
“IT IS NOT OUT OF THE QUESTION TO LEAVE”
The referees made an official statement. We are all human, actually we need to think about this first. The referees were in a very bad mood that day. We will camp with the referees over the weekend. A great effort will be made to restore their psychology. We will try to fulfill their self-confidence. All referees empathize. We explained to them what was necessary and they agreed. Halil Umut Meler is also a respected referee by UEFA and FIFA. We expect him to take part in EURO 2024. Last week I had a meeting with Rosetti, the head of the referees. It is not true that Halil Umut Meler is thinking of quitting. It’s easy to lose, you have to win. We will do the necessary work on this issue.
“WE WILL POSTPONE TURKISH CUP MATCHES”
We will also postpone the Turkish Cup matches, which were supposed to be played in the week of January 10, to a later date.