03.05.2026 09:22
Galatasaray head coach Okan Buruk made statements after the 4-1 loss to Samsunspor. Evaluating the match, Okan Buruk said, 'We will win the Antalyaspor match and declare our championship.'
In the 32nd week of the Trendyol Super League, leader Galatasaray, who lost 4-1 away to Samsunspor, saw their head coach Okan Buruk state that they made too many mistakes as a team today. Buruk said in the press conference following the match at Samsun Yeni 19 Mayıs Stadium that they made many mistakes in various parts of the game.
''WE FACED A GOOD TEAM''
Buruk, explaining they faced a good team, said, "We made too many mistakes in many areas during the game today. It could be due to the psychology of my players thinking, 'We are champions anyway, we have achieved this.' Of course, we faced a good team. There was a good team against us. We started the match with a goal. Until the goal we conceded, the game was largely in our hands. We were not giving our opponent many chances to come forward. Of course, from a transition play—actually a ball we lost—after a very good breakout, we conceded a very simple goal because we couldn't close down after losing it."
''THE WORST PART OF THE DAY''
Buruk noted they also started the second half well, saying, "We were in the opponent's half, the ball was with us. We had two clear chances. One with Barış, the other with Osimhen... Then there was Sane's shot hitting the post. We got close to scoring, but this time our opponent capitalized very well on every chance they had. After going down to 10 men, we struggled a bit. Besides the struggle, I think there were still too many mistakes. It was the worst part of the day for us. Of course, not individually, but as a team we made too many mistakes today. We made them in every area. Up front, in midfield, and our defensive players too. In this sense, it was not the match we wanted."
''WE WILL DO OUR BEST TO DECLARE THE CHAMPIONSHIP AT HOME''
Buruk pointed out that they still have a 4-point lead in the championship race, stating, "The next match is our new goal. We will lift our heads and do our best to declare the championship in our next home match. As I said, this is not over. We need to be much more prepared for the next match than we were this week. If we had scored one of the two missed goal chances in the second half, turning the match in our favor, it would have been a different scenario for us, but everything went wrong. On the other hand, every ball coming towards our goal went in. In the second half, everything went against us. Sometimes that happens in football."
Buruk emphasized that his players were eager and motivated against Fenerbahçe, noting:
"Even though Fenerbahçe hasn't won the championship in many years, and despite Galatasaray playing for their fourth championship, everyone was talking last week about how hungry, how eager Galatasaray was, and how much they wanted the match. Those who did it last week would have done it this week. So, that hunger continues, of course; that championship feeling is in our players. The mindset of 'we've finished this somehow' inevitably crept in. Suddenly, everything turned into championship celebrations. When you do that, players can be affected in some way. You try to break that, you try to change it, but sometimes that also brings a sense of ease. Sometimes that can reflect very differently on the games. But hopefully, next week we will put forward a much more eager and stronger game to win the championship again in our own stadium, and hopefully celebrate next week. We will win against Antalyaspor and declare our championship."