24.02.2025 23:10
In the 25th week of the Super League, Galatasaray faced Fenerbahçe in a derby match. The game, played at RAMS Park, ended in a goalless draw.
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In the derby of the 25th week of the Super League, Galatasaray faced Fenerbahçe. The match was officiated by Sloven referee Slavko Vincic.
LEMINA AND EREN STARTED IN THE FIRST 11
Mario Lemina and Eren Elmalı, who were added to Galatasaray's squad during the mid-season transfer, started a match in the first 11 for the first time this season. The two players, who wore the yellow-red jersey for the first time in the match against Çaykur Rizespor in the 24th week, were included in the game in the second half of that match. Meanwhile, Yunus Akgün, who recovered from his injury, was included in the squad for the derby.
FIRST DERBY FOR THE NEWCOMERS
New transfers Przemyslaw Frankowski and Eren Elmalı played in a Galatasaray-Fenerbahçe derby for the first time. Other new transfers in the yellow-red team, Ahmed Kutucu and Carlos Cuesta, along with goalkeeper Günay Güvenç and Yusuf Demir, who had not played in a derby before, waited among the substitutes to experience the excitement for the first time.
ICARDI WAS IN THE STANDS
Mauro Icardi, the star of the yellow-red team who ended his season due to injury, greeted the fans at RAMS Park. Before the match, the Argentine player toured the stands to the tune of the song "Let me be your love," which is associated with him. The fans showed great affection for Icardi.
FOREIGN REFEREE FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 55 YEARS
A foreign referee officiated a Galatasaray-Fenerbahçe match for the first time in 55 years. Since the start of professional leagues between the two teams in 1959, a foreign referee has officiated in 17 derbies. The last foreign referee was in the derby played on April 26, 1970, hosted by Fenerbahçe. After 55 years from that derby, the teams faced each other under the management of a foreign referee. Sloven referee Slavko Vincic officiated the match. Vincic was assisted by Tomaz Klancnik and Andraz Kovacic, while Kadir Sağlam served as the fourth official.
BARIŞ ALPER SAID "DALYA"
A plaque was presented to Barış Alper Yılmaz, who has played over 100 matches in the league wearing the Galatasaray jersey. The national player, who wore the yellow-red jersey for the 100th time in the match against Gaziantep FK in the 22nd week, was presented with a plaque and a number 100 jersey by the club's vice president Metin Öztürk before the derby.
GALATASARAY'S WARNING TO FANS
The management of the yellow-red club warned fans to only support the team during the match and not to be provoked. Galatasaray Club shared messages for the fans on social media and also distributed flyers outside and inside the stadium.
The warning message to the fans included the following statements:
"Today we are facing one of the most critical tests of the season. The concentration, desire, and common sense of us in the stands are as important as the players who will play on the field at this crucial turn in our Galatasaray's championship path. Today, we are up against a team that will not hesitate to provoke us in every way possible to achieve success. They will try to provoke our team and us in the stands at every opportunity before, during, and after the match. We must not allow them to provoke us, especially from the moment the opponent steps onto the field. Because they will want to feed off this. Today is the day to stop the attacks on our community and to dismantle the traps set."
The announcement listed the actions that yellow-red fans should take in bullet points. Additionally, frequent warning announcements were made before the match.
HIGH SECURITY MEASURES
The Istanbul Police Department took extensive security measures for the derby. A total of 32,000 security personnel were deployed across Istanbul for the match between Galatasaray and Fenerbahçe at RAMS Park. During the match, police created a security barrier between the stands and the field.
RAMS PARK SOLD OUT
Yellow-red fans consumed all the tickets available for the derby. The match, held in front of full stands at RAMS Park, was watched by approximately 50,000 yellow-red fans and 2,500 yellow-blue fans.
FOREIGN PRESS INFLUX
The derby, which is the most watched match in Turkish football, was attended by 25 foreign press members.
Through the Turkish Sports Writers Association, a total of 25 reporters, photojournalists, and cameramen from France, Sweden, Germany, Austria, England, the Netherlands, Palestine, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, Iran, Spain, Romania, and Denmark were accredited for the derby. In the derby of the 25th week of the Trendyol Super League, Fenerbahçe, who visited Galatasaray, made 2 changes to the squad compared to the starting 11 in their last match against Anderlecht in the UEFA Europa League. The experienced coach moved Bright Osayi-Samuel and Sofyan Amrabat, who were in the starting 11 against Anderlecht, to the bench. The Portuguese coach gave Oğuz Aydın and Çağlar Söyüncü starting positions in place of these players in the Galatasaray derby. Fenerbahçe started the derby with İrfan Can Eğribayat, Milan Skriniar, Çağlar Söyüncü, Yusuf Akçiçek, Oğuz Aydın, Fred Rodrigues, Sebastian Szymanski, Filip Kostic, Dusan Tadic, Edin Dzeko, and Youssef En-Nesyri. Dominik Livakovic, Ertuğrul Çetin, Alexander Djiku, Mert Müldür, Bright Osayi-Samuel, Mert Hakan Yandaş, İrfan Can Kahveci, Sofyan Amrabat, Anderson Talisca, and Cenk Tosun were on the bench for the yellow-blue team.
REACTION TO MERT HAKAN
Fenerbahçe's midfielder Mert Hakan Yandaş walked around the field before the Galatasaray derby. Yandaş went in front of the yellow-red stands and waited in front of the ultrAslan section for a while. During this time, the fans reacted, and the song "They bark from behind" was played in the stadium.
THEY DID NOT SHAKE HANDS
Before the Galatasaray-Fenerbahçe derby, the players of both teams made an unprecedented move in this fierce rivalry. After the reading of the National Anthem, the players dispersed onto the field without shaking hands with each other. These images were met with astonishment by football fans.
FENERBAHÇE'S GOAL DISALLOWED
Fenerbahçe took the lead 1-0 in the 12th minute with a goal from Oğuz Aydın. However, this goal was disallowed due to a foul by Szymanski on Muslera before the position.
TENSION BETWEEN OSIMHEN AND MERT HAKAN
In the 33rd minute of the Galatasaray - Fenerbahçe derby, tensions rose. Victor Osimhen fell to the ground after a duel with Yusuf Akçiçek. Osimhen and the Galatasaray bench were waiting for a penalty. Referee Vincic, after listening to VAR for a while, decided to continue the game. During this time, Osimhen and Mert Hakan from the Fenerbahçe bench got into a verbal altercation. Osimhen made a "be quiet" gesture to Mert Hakan. After the substitutes also got involved in the discussion, the administrative managers of both teams received yellow cards.
NO SHOTS ON TARGET IN THE FIRST HALF
The first half of the derby ended in a 0-0 draw. While the yellow-blue team had 4 shots, the yellow-red team had 2 shots, and the fact that none of these shots were on target was the most striking detail of the first 45 minutes.
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GAME STOPPED
Fenerbahçe fans threw flares onto the Galatasaray stands in the 52nd minute of the derby. Referee Slavko Vincic stopped the match for about 2 minutes and waited for the situation to return to normal. The security ensured that the flares were extinguished.
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