12.11.2026 08:30
Galatasaray Vice President Mehmet Cibara's use of the word "chronic" regarding Victor Osimhen's injury drew attention. After his statement at the Divan Board meeting, Cibara, taking the floor again, said that he had confused the medical terms and corrected his statement with the words, "I said chronic instead of acute. Osimhen does not have a chronic illness. Rest assured."
At Galatasaray's ordinary November Divan Board meeting, the players' injuries and the pitch at RAMS Park were discussed. Speaking at the meeting, which President Dursun Özbek could not attend due to the COP31 Climate Summit, Galatasaray Second President Mehmet Cibara drew attention especially with his remarks about Victor Osimhen's health condition. Cibara later corrected the statement he used in his first remarks and stated that the Nigerian footballer did not have a chronic illness.
"OSIMHEN'S INJURY IS SOMETHING CHRONIC"
Addressing the recently debated stadium pitch and player injuries, Cibara said he did not agree with the view that the injuries were directly caused by the pitch.
Cibara said, "There is no such thing as injuries being caused by the pitch. It has nothing to do with it. Leao's injury is completely different; Osimhen's injury is something chronic. I shouldn't say more about it. Because we are in the international match break."
HE CORRECTED HIS WORDS: I SAID CHRONIC INSTEAD OF ACUTE
After his use of the word "chronic" for Osimhen's injury, Cibara made another statement and said he had used an incorrect medical term.
The Galatasaray Second President clarified his remarks by saying, "I apologize. I am a senior mechanical engineer. I used an incorrect medical term. I said chronic instead of acute. I wanted to correct that. Osimhen does not have a chronic illness. Rest assured."
Thus, Cibara stated that the expression he used in his first statement was incorrect and that he did not mean to describe Osimhen's injury as chronic.
HE RESPONDED TO CRITICISM ABOUT THE STADIUM PITCH
Also speaking about the pitch at RAMS Park, Cibara recalled that the pitch had been cited as an example in Europe a year earlier. Describing how the pitch recovered quickly despite the heavy rain before the Manchester United match, Cibara drew attention to the technological systems used in the stadium.
Stating that there are heating, vacuum, drainage, and ventilation systems beneath the pitch, Cibara said the infrastructure was strengthened with the work carried out in 2021. Emphasizing that the team responsible for maintaining the pitch works with great dedication, Cibara reported that moisture measurements are taken even at night.
"I COULD NOT SEE A DIRECT CULPRIT HERE"
Acknowledging that the management could also have made mistakes in the problems regarding the pitch, Cibara stated that the players' requests may have been misunderstood or miscommunicated. Cibara said, "There may be a mistake by the management; we may have misunderstood or miscommunicated our players' requests. I could not see a direct culprit here," expressing that the problems experienced could not be attributed to a single cause.