18.09.2025 09:02
In the match postponed from the first week of the Super League, Fenerbahçe drew 2-2 at home against Corendon Alanyaspor. The club president, Ali Koç, reacted to the referee's decisions. Speaking alongside the players, Koç said, "This man can never come here again. I'm not saying this because I'm the president; I'm saying that Fenerbahçe fans won't allow him. Thousands of people will come down to the field if this man comes here again."
Fenerbahçe, which drew 2-2 at home against Corendon Alanyaspor in the postponed match of the 1st week of the Trendyol Super League, saw club president Ali Koç react to the referee's decisions.
"WE WERE TARGETED"
In statements made to the press after the match, Ali Koç claimed that the referees "targeted" the yellow-blue club before the upcoming presidential election.
Koç emphasized that the digital referee appointments do not reflect reality, stating, "This is an operation carried out before the elections. No one should tell me it was a digital appointment. The federation, everyone knows that there is no digital appointment. To knowingly assign the last appointed referee, someone so shameless that they would participate in training under the alias of Galatasaray, we were expecting this before the elections. This is an operation for our elections. What the referees are, what the two referees are, is well known by Fenerbahçe fans. For a long time, I have tried to explain to the federation president who the head of the MHK is, what they represent, and what ideology they are affiliated with as much as I can. I am addressing all of Turkey. As long as my heart beats in this body, everyone will see who Ferhat Gündoğdu (the head of MHK) is and what they represent, one way or another."
"THE WHOLE OF ANKARA SHOULD TALK ABOUT THIS PERSON"
Koç pointed out that there were two penalty decisions in one position during the match, saying, "This is not how it works. What did the federation president say? The VAR referee making a mistake is unacceptable. We waited a bit. It is very rare. It is rare to have two penalty situations in one position. Such a position occurred. Whatever authority you ask, they either say there is a penalty in both positions or one of the two positions is a penalty. It's ridiculous. The extra time was played for 2 minutes. It was listened to as if it would go to VAR, and then the match was ended. The person who sent this here is responsible for the job. Mr. President, I am addressing you. You said, 'The VAR referee cannot make a mistake.' We are waiting for your stance. For the sake of Turkish football, listen to who the head of the MHK is. The whole of Ankara should talk about this person. Why are you not listening? Why are you not investigating thoroughly? This person does not even have the record to be the head of the MHK in terms of refereeing career. Last time they appointed someone and put someone behind them. Someone named Ahmet Şahin. He was the real mastermind, along with a few others. The appointment of this referee before the elections is an operation against Fenerbahçe's elections, an intervention."
"WE WILL BE CHAMPIONS"
Koç explained that if they are re-elected, they will fight everyone, starting with the MHK, saying, "On Monday, depending on the election results, I want you to know that we will fight everyone, including the head of the MHK, and that this mentality cannot stand against Fenerbahçe. One way or another, we will be champions. Did we play very well today? No. Did we deserve the draw? Absolutely not. We missed a penalty, we conceded a ridiculous goal. This is the fate of goalkeepers. A goal came at a critical moment. If a goal comes when it’s 3-0, 5-0, or 4-1, it doesn’t matter. It is unacceptable that the referee did not call the penalty he saw in the corner for two positions at the same time, and VAR did not call it. These people came for a duty. They fulfilled their duties. As long as I am alive, I will pursue what Ferhat Gündoğdu is, what mentality he serves, and what he represents until it is explained."
"THIS WILL BE REVENGE"
Ali Koç stated that referee errors affect the standings at the end of the season. Claiming that their legitimate goals were not awarded in the Trabzonspor match, Koç continued:
"The Fenerbahçe community knows very well what is what. A derby match was played over the weekend. A ball that crossed the line was not awarded a goal. A position that should have resulted in a red card was given by VAR. The center referee did not give it. Our opponent claims that the goal they scored was a goal. When we asked foreign referees, they said there was a foul before the goal. It can be debated, but in our opinion, it is a clear foul. Only that is being discussed. The goal that crossed the line is not being discussed at all. We are not saying these things for nothing. These situations at the beginning of the season are among the main factors affecting the standings at the end of the season. This will be revenge. Sending two referees and conducting an operation to influence the elections. We faced a lot of pressure on Sunday, and it is being portrayed in the media as if we did Fenerbahçe a favor. That’s why let’s do the exact opposite. This mentality cannot and should not be at the head of Turkish football, where hundreds of millions of euros are spent. If you do not want your good intentions to be questioned, I have explained this to you. Please do not be defensive, investigate. Why is this being said? Understand who this person is and what they are. At the very least, this person does not have the capacity to be the head of the MHK in terms of refereeing records in the 6th and 7th largest leagues in Europe. We expressed that we had no tolerance left from last year. If Turkish referees are intervening in the elections, we are at the end of the line. You will see what will happen from now on."
"WE HAVE BEEN SAYING FOREIGN VAR FROM THE BEGINNING"
Ali Koç stated that they have been advocating for foreign VAR decisions from the very beginning. Emphasizing that their reckoning has just begun, Koç said, "We have been saying foreign VAR from the beginning. There is a stubbornness going on here. There is no harm, there is benefit. We saw it last season. At least the mistakes were distributed evenly. It is unacceptable. What will happen to our 2 points? Will they say you should have played better, or will they say you should have scored the penalty? They are saying there are two more penalties. I say it’s a penalty in the last position. The body language of the player shows everything. If there was no election on Sunday, thousands of us would have marched to the federation. We will wait until Monday to avoid being misinterpreted. No matter what the result is, my reckoning is just beginning."
Koç stated that the referee with a FIFA badge does not speak a foreign language, saying, "Desire, intent, and determination are necessary to eliminate this problem. It is very simple; how can a person who quit refereeing because he was caught in a 'casino' be accepted as the VAR director? How can this person be made the VAR director where there is good intention? They wear a FIFA badge, but the person does not speak the language. It is time for the TFF president to show good intentions to prevent this stubbornness. I called him. He said he had not seen the position yet. I am waiting for news." Koç emphasized that they believe the team will be champions, saying:
"Issues like applications to the federation are visual things. What we will do will be more severe. Let Sunday pass, and then you will see. These kids will be champions whether we are there or not. It was a difficult match for both teams. Our new transfers could not play. We played with a limited squad because we sent many of our players to create space, and they played with a limited squad too. Our coach just arrived. This does not reflect poorly on the coach. These kids need to win the match even without a coach with the power on paper. We experienced such a night. You can concede a ridiculous goal, you can miss a penalty. These are things that always happen in football, but the fact that VAR does not see two penalties is unacceptable. The situation is right in front of their eyes. The player sweeps the ball with his hand.
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The referee's decision cannot be overlooked, this is a malicious act. This has been done intentionally and knowingly.
Koç, who also expressed that the referee assignment was wrong, stated, "The appointment of these referees to the match is entirely incorrect. This is an operation that has been carried out against us intentionally before the elections. The Republic of Turkey is a powerful state. At some point, there will be an operation against them as well. They will be exposed. Our championships and points are flowing away. Why don't we complain when there is a foreign VAR? Because it is balanced. We gave away the championship in Sivas while there was a foreign VAR. We did not raise our voices. It was the same referee again. Our MHK president is someone who puts us to sleep by not telling the truth, appearing to be well-intentioned while having a thousand thoughts in the back of his mind. If they want, they can end my season. I will show this country who this man is, who his mentors are, and why he was appointed. Then we will see if he can stand against the Fenerbahçe community?"
"THIS MAN CAN NEVER COME BACK HERE"
Koç, who also stated that the referees were malicious during the match, continued his words as follows:
"If it were due to incompetence, it would be distributed evenly. That does not happen. Look at last season, how many mistakes were made until the foreign VAR referees came. When matches are won with one-goal results. Our community is angry, furious. I am not saying to be at ease. From now on, whoever it may be on Monday, it is time to take responsibility, to take to the streets if necessary, and to go to the federation in Beylerbeyi if necessary. We will protect our own interests. For the sake of Turkish football, I kindly ask Ferhat Gündoğdu to withdraw from the Turkish football family without prolonging it any further. This time I am asking kindly. There are some places where certain known individuals have not been cleaned. One of them is football. None of the big clubs want it. We do not want it either. So why are we being stubborn? President İbrahim is trying to clean up, but there are still viruses in the system. This man can never come back here. I am not saying this while I am president, I am saying that this man cannot come here, Fenerbahçeliler will not allow it. Thousands of people will go onto the field if this man comes back here."
MERT HAKAN YANDAŞ: WE ARE THE TEAM THAT WILL BE CHAMPIONS
Fenerbahçe's team captain Mert Hakan Yandaş stated that they will be champions at the end of the season. Mert Hakan, who conveyed that President Ali Koç asked them not to speak, but as players, they could not remain silent, said, "Our president addressed the necessary points. He said the necessary things. When we said we wanted to talk, our president said we definitely should not speak, and that they would take it elsewhere. We did not want to go like this. We are ashamed of the result we obtained. I say this with all my sincerity on behalf of all my friends. We are really ashamed, we are ashamed because we wasted the effort put in. I hope those who did not give a penalty in the situation where the opposing team player said it was a penalty will also be ashamed."
Mert Hakan, drawing attention to the fact that they spoke as a team, completed his words as follows:
"We talked about the necessary things inside. From now on, we will be tighter together, fight more, and fight harder for every player who is whistled. I want to say that the one being whistled is not just that football player. I want to say that everyone is affected. They are angry, they are right. In football, it can be 2-1 in 5 minutes, the whole stadium, the whole community rejoices together. I think that whistling a player while the game is ongoing is not a beneficial situation. Everyone thinks individually that the player is being whistled. We are all being whistled. They are right. We are really ashamed of the result we obtained. We brought this situation here, and we will get out of it. We wanted to stay inside and talk until this hour, whether foreign or Turkish. We also came here by making an ultimatum. Hopefully, we will be the team that will be champions at the end of the league."
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