Were the red card and penalty decisions in the Fenerbahçe-Rizespor match correct? The Trio team settles the debate

In the 22nd week of the Süper Lig, Fenerbahçe defeated Çaykur Rizespor 3-2 at home. Olawoyin and Rachid Ghezzal from Çaykur Rizespor were shown red cards. The Trio team, consisting of Bahattin Duran, Bülent Yıldırım, and Deniz Çoban, evaluated the controversial incidents on the broadcaster.

Is a foul sufficient for Amrabat's challenge on Olawoyin?

Deniz Çoban: An uncontrolled challenge. A foul is not enough. It should be a yellow card. Even if he had warned him, it was the very beginning of the game, and he didn't even do that.

Bahattin Duran: A very borderline move. I said that if I saw this position without looking at the story of the match, a yellow card would be more correct. At the start of the match, I would have expected the referee to warn Amrabat seriously.

Bülent Yıldırım: A delayed challenge. An uncontrolled foul. A yellow card would have been more correct.

Is a card necessary for Ghezzal's challenge on Levent Mercan?

Bahattin Duran: Ghezzal puts his hand on the head area, then his hand comes into contact with Levent's face and eyes. An uncontrolled foul, it should be a yellow card.

Deniz Çoban: When you watch it from start to finish, it can hit the eye, the consequences could be severe; an uncontrolled foul and a yellow card.

Bülent Yıldırım: His fingers made contact with Levent's eye. However, in this state, a yellow card is required.

Is a foul necessary for Samet Akaydin's challenge on Dzeko?

Bahattin Duran: The referee should have called a foul at 11 minutes and 44 seconds. The ball remained with Fenerbahçe. Fenerbahçe conceded the second goal after this position. The ball was going to pass from Fenerbahçe to Rizespor, then from Rizespor to Fenerbahçe... The attacking phase ended multiple times. That foul had very little to do with the goal. The ball changed possession between the teams 2-3 times. We wanted to analyze this because a goal was scored afterward.

Deniz Çoban: The attacking phase changed significantly. It is not correct to link that foul to the goal.

Is the referee's yellow card for Olawoyin for simulation correct?

Bahattin Duran: I agree with the referee; it is a move intended to deceive. There is no contact from Skriniar's body or foot with Olawoyin. He let himself go and made a move to deceive the referee. He bent both legs and let himself fall. This decision is absolutely correct, a yellow card.

Deniz Çoban: A clear simulation, a clear yellow card. Indisputable.

Bülent Yıldırım: What does the UEFA referee handbook say about simulation? There may be no contact at all, the attacker may initiate the contact, or they may exaggerate a slight contact to the body to show the referee. An indisputable yellow card, an exemplary application from start to finish.

Mocsi received a yellow card after his challenge on En-Nesyri. Is the decision correct?

Deniz Çoban: This position has also been used in the last 2-3 UEFA training packages. You can play the ball, but in challenges from behind, you cannot play the ball with one foot and sweep the opponent with the other. En-Nesyri can lean in, you have to come from behind in a controlled manner; you hit the ball with your right foot, but what about the left foot? It could cause a serious injury. You cannot come from behind like this; if you do, you face the consequences. You cannot say he played the ball.

Bahattin Duran: Even if his knee is bent, that doesn't make his action controlled. One foot is forward, the knee is not bent; if he came with his studs up, the color of the card would change. The entire action is uncontrolled. You can cause a harmful action to your opponent with your knee. A yellow card is correct.

Bülent Yıldırım: This is the definition of an uncontrolled action. Mocsi's two feet are not on the ground, he came from behind Nesyri, both feet are in the air, there is speed, and the action is made with his left knee. This is an uncontrolled foul. There is a health risk. A yellow card is correct.

Is the penalty awarded to Fenerbahçe correct?

Deniz Çoban: The defending players are busy turning their backs to the ball and watching the opponent. If the ball came, it would hit his head. This position is a penalty. Olawoyin held Skriniar. You applied resistance to the opponent, and even if it was with one hand, by putting your body and head in the way to prevent him from going, you did everything. This is an indisputable penalty. The VAR intervention is correct. The consequence of an off-the-ball foul is also an indisputable yellow card. Both Olawoyin's first and second yellow cards are correct.

Bülent Yıldırım: Olawoyin's violation is amateurish; you are leading 2-0. You are holding the opponent clearly, effectively, and strongly, without any intention of playing the ball, for a long time. Until you bring the opponent down. It would have been better if it were seen on the field. The VAR intervention is one hundred percent correct. The impact and the holding are very clear. In off-the-ball violations, it is in the category of unsporting behavior in principle; the second yellow card is correct.

Bahattin Duran: He wrapped him with his left hand, leaned his head, and grabbed him from the waist with his right hand; he leaned his body, neck, and head against Skriniar, never looking at the ball. His only goal was to prevent his opponent from playing. The ball is in play, the action started and continued, continued, continued. It is an indisputable penalty on the field. The VAR intervention is correct. There is a lot of evidence here. He wrapped him with his left hand, right hand, held him from the waist, and disrupted him with his head, neck, and entire body. VAR is correct, the penalty is correct, and the second yellow card is correct.

Is the yellow card for Amrabat's foul on Ghezzal correct, or is a red card required?

Bahattin Duran: He comes onto the ankle over the shoe, taking the shoe off. I find the yellow card sufficient. Why? He stepped with the tip of the bottom part of the cleat, the entire force transfer is not there, half of his sole is on the ground; if he had stepped and transferred his power, it would be red, but in this form, a yellow card is sufficient.

Deniz Çoban: This position is a classic yellow card. The heel is on the ground, the knee is bent. This position occurred after the referee did not give the penalty position. The game stopped here for a VAR intervention. Since the subsequent part of the game emerged, a violation occurred. The uncontrolled action remains, the yellow card stands.

Bülent Yıldırım: The heel being on the ground is something that affects the transfer of the player's center of gravity toward the opponent's tendon; the force and impact are reduced. The point of contact was on the cleat. If it were in a slightly higher area, it would be a red card.

Is the referee's decision regarding Rachid Ghezzal's red card correct?

Bahattin Duran: Ghezzal threw himself to the ground. Because this took so long, the referee already had the yellow card in his hand. It was clear he would show a card to Ghezzal even before the substitution; a dialogue took place between them. After showing the yellow card, Ghezzal saw a direct red card. Ghezzal was sent off with a direct red card. After the applause. Ghezzal also shared on his social media account that he used a swear word starting with 'f' and ending with 'off'. I experienced this in a derby in 2009, with Colin Kazım, he was running toward me saying things. There is a loophole there too, but if you say this swear word to the referee's face, it is a swear word in our culture. If you have been playing here for years, you know this is a swear word. If you say it to the referee's face from a close distance, you get sent off. I think it's correct. The player wrote what he said on his own account...

Bülent Yıldırım: He said this expression to the referee's face from 1-2 meters, maximum 3 meters. I don't agree with the cultural argument. There is no culture for this word starting with 'f' at this distance. How many players are there who heard this word? There are four players. You are saying the word starting with 'f' from a distance of two meters. If I were him, I would send him off too.

Deniz Çoban: This mentioned word is not a swear word in Europe, but it is a swear word in our culture. If I were in charge of a team, when I first signed a foreign player, I would tell him that this word is a swear word in our culture and not to use it against the referee. The player would keep this in mind and not say it to the referee. If the referee hears this in Turkish culture, he will send him off, and he should. Why those who didn't send him off didn't is another matter. If I were the referee, I would have sent him off too. It is a humiliating, degrading expression.