Galatasaray's statement on the Ziraat Turkish Cup and referee appointment

Speaking to the yellow-red club's YouTube channel, Hatipoğlu stated that they are preparing rigorously for the Fenerbahçe match, saying, "Our players are extremely ambitious. They know the importance of the match. We will sweat until the very last second to win both trophies this season. We will emerge from Wednesday's derby with our heads held high. Galatasaray is the favorite for the match. With the support of our fans, we want to pass this round and be the side that wins the cup."

Sharing his views on the appointment of referee Cihan Aydın for the derby, İbrahim Hatipoğlu made the following remarks:

"We were expecting similar conditions on Wednesday to the derby we played at RAMS Park a month ago. We believe both matches are of equal difficulty, both in terms of referee appointments and the security measures taken. We were hoping that similar precautions and appointments would be made. A Turkish referee has been announced. As Galatasaray, we have said at every opportunity that we do not distinguish between Turkish and foreign referees, and that we want good referees.

We are at the same point. Various discussions took place regarding the appointed referee. Perceptions were created by Acun Ilıcalı through a young girl that Cihan Aydın is a Galatasaray fan. An attempt was made to shape public opinion in this way. In the end, this appointment was made. The most important issue for us here is that the referee acts fairly.

It has been proven very clearly today that those who demanded a foreign referee that day were not looking for justice, but for privileges. Those who did not call for a foreign referee in any way, who did not raise hell and scream that day, have actually shown the public very clearly today what kind of privilege they are chasing.

That day, Galatasaray had the home-field advantage. The only thing they wanted to do was to eliminate the home-field advantage through pressure. Today, there wasn't the slightest call from them to prevent the same atmosphere from being created there. I didn't hear one."

"WILL HE BE ABLE TO HANDLE THE PRESSURE?"

Emphasizing that they have lost points in 2 of the 3 matches officiated by referee Cihan Aydın this season, Hatipoğlu noted the following:

"He is a referee with whom we have lost the most points, in the matches where we drew against Hatay and Kasımpaşa. Are these coincidences? Were these factors in his selection? I leave this to the discretion of the public. I think that pressure and rhetoric are very important for a referee to correctly reflect their performance on the field.

Cihan Aydın is a young referee of ours. Will he be able to handle these pressures? There is a question mark. The same referee's FIFA badge was suspended recently. Unfortunately, referees without FIFA badges were appointed to the Beşiktaş derby and this match. I hope Cihan Aydın puts on a refereeing performance that will embarrass everyone. I hope he lets everyone watch an impartial and fair match, and may the best team win. We believe to the end that we are the better side and that we will win the match.

As long as they don't try to stop us with off-the-field events. Why was a foreign referee appointed to that match, and why was it announced that one of the best referees in the world would be brought in for that match, but it is not being done today? We think this means that Galatasaray-Fenerbahçe matches are one thing at RAMS Park, but become an ordinary match when we play in Kadıköy. I hope a good VAR referee is also appointed there, and the match ends without any accidents or trouble."

News Source: 12punto