Harsh criticism of the TFF from Beşiktaş Club Vice President Mete Vardar

In a statement to an AA reporter, Mete Vardar argued that Beşiktaş was a pioneer in the management change at the federation, saying, "After taking office, there was a change in Turkish football. Beşiktaş was the biggest pioneer of the change in the federation. We didn't just go and vote with the delegates. We did work there, we caused some clubs to change their minds, and we ensured the change in the federation. We listened to the voice of our community. There were issues we were suffering from regarding the old management. There were issues our former president was suffering from. The Beşiktaş president was pointed at here. We observed these, we listened to the common sense of our community, and we were pioneers in the change of the TFF management," he said.

"BEŞİKTAŞ CLUB HAS NO PROBLEM WITH THE TFF MANAGEMENT"

Stating that they believe TFF President İbrahim Hacıosmanoğlu will fulfill his promises, Vardar conveyed that some club executives are constantly at the federation and that this situation creates discomfort.

"Beşiktaş Club has no problem with the TFF management. We have very close friends there whom we trust," said Vardar, and continued his words as follows:

"We know Mr. İbrahim (Hacıosmanoğlu) well, we know his straightforward sides. We have no doubt that he will keep the promises he made, but we have a problem with the TFF. This is not a problem of today either. There has been a structure there for 20 years. It has become the backyard of some clubs. Executives of some clubs are there 6 days a week. They go to drink tea and coffee. What business do you have there? We are doing our best to take the necessary precautions in certain areas in a short time. We cannot express everything. We cannot express every sound we make. We have no doubt that the federation management will fulfill its responsibilities. The cadres previously formed in the MHK (Central Referee Board) and the boards need to show the effort they can to ensure that the change yields results as soon as possible and that Turkish football reaches better points. We are with them to the end. Let them do what is right without fear. If they do this, I am sure they will be on the right path. Let them not bow to pressure. If the same mentality continues in the medium and long term, we will not be with them either."

"OUR COMMUNITY'S EXPECTATION IS THAT A SOLUTION BE FOUND TO THIS IN THE SHORT TERM"

Arguing that no one has any trust left in the referee community, the black-and-white executive stated that they are persistent in their demand for foreign referees in VAR, and noted the following:

"The TFF President said, 'The referee can make a mistake, VAR will not make a mistake.' There is work being done on this. We are following the point of selecting VAR referees from foreigners. I am 50 years old, 45 years of my life have been spent in football. When a referee goes out onto the pitch, I can feel how he will manage that match from his body language. If I can do this, can't the authorities in the federation observe this? If we start now, we can only plan for 3 years from now, but we have to start somewhere. In the past, mistakes were made more clearly. Where there is technology, where there are positive training processes, how can a referee make so many mistakes? There must be evil and ill intent within them. Where there is technology, it can have tremendous effects on wins, losses, and draws. We are going through an erosion. There is no trust. Trust in the referee community is at a minimum level. Let the referees also come out, if they have any, let them state their complaints about us too. Let them come out and speak too. Beşiktaş Club is very aggrieved by this issue. Our nervous system is in a difficult state regarding this issue now. Our community's expectation is that a solution be found to this in the short term. A lot falls on the TFF management. The football family has no time or patience to wait."

"THE IMPORTANT THING IS THAT WE UNITE AND BE ONE"

Claiming that they have moved away from the top due to referee errors, Mete Vardar said, "Take the points that the clubs we compete with have received with the referees, and put the points we have lost with the referees side by side. You will see clubs with equal points at the top," he expressed.

Reminding that they are 10 points behind the leader in the Super Lig, the black-and-white executive said, "If our penalty had been given in the Trabzonspor match... We didn't play well in the Galatasaray match, but there were 2 red cards. We would have played 9 against 11. Could Galatasaray have won that match, is it possible? There is a penalty position for Rashica in the Başakşehir match. It's not just a penalty, the referee didn't let us move forward for 20 minutes. Then add up the points. Let those who say 'You threw in the towel' put these down and weigh them. They will say 'You are also responsible for the referees.' We are saying that we are doing our best regarding this. There may be things that cannot be explained. We are working in the background. We cannot come out every minute and say we did this. Our 13-person management staff and our president are showing desperate efforts. We will all shake off this dead weight together, we will get out of this. The clubs we compete with will also experience these. The important thing is that we unite and be one," he evaluated.

"THERE MAY BE POINT LOSSES BUT THERE IS NO GIVING UP"

Mete Vardar stated that they have not thrown in the towel in any lane and that they are in the race, saying, "I think there is a big positive difference between the excitement when we started the job and today. Beşiktaş Club is Turkey's oldest club. There are also very high expectations in terms of sporting success. We are also fans at the same time. We are closely following the expectations of the community and the fans. We have the same feelings." he said.

Reminding that they won the Turkish Cup, which they saw as their first goal after taking office, Vardar spoke as follows:

"The Turkish Cup started Beşiktaş's European adventure this season. This was very important both financially and in terms of prestige. The Turkish Cup was a factor in us playing the Super Cup. The Super Cup was also the excitement that the entire Beşiktaş community missed and longed for for years, by winning the match 5-0 in front of 40 thousand Galatasaray fans. 2.5 months have passed. During this time, we made 11 transfers, 3 of which were continuing from last year, and we bought 8 new players. We terminated contracts with 30 players. We won 2 cups in 10 months. We are in the race. Just as we lost 8 points in 3 weeks, our rivals can also lose. We will win that match together with our fans in the Göztepe match and we will set off. This is a long journey. There may be point losses, but there is no giving up, we continue to fight. We did not come to save Beşiktaş's today. We came to serve the club from scratch. It should not be thought of only as a football team. We came by making medium and long-term plans. When we look back at the end of our term, we want to be a group that serves Beşiktaş not only with cups but with a management approach worthy of Beşiktaş's greatness."

Stating that the Hasan Arat management did not aspire to the position to provide short-term contributions, Mete Vardar said, "We won 1 championship in 4.5 years during the Serdar Bilgili period. We won 1 championship in 8 years during Mr. Yıldırım (Demirören)'s time, 2 championships in 7.5 years during the Fikret Orman period, and 1 championship in 5 years during the Ahmet Nur Çebi period. I wish we could be champions every year. When we started with President Hasan Arat, we did not come to provide short-term contributions to Beşiktaş. Despite this, we won 2 cups in 10 months. We came here to build a club with a solid foundation," he expressed his opinion.

"BEŞİKTAŞ CLUB WILL DEFINITELY COMPLETE ITS DEFICIENCIES"

Stating that there are deficiencies in the black-and-white football team and that they accept the criticisms regarding squad depth, Mete Vardar noted the following:

"There is a deficiency in our football team. We changed 90 percent of the team in a single transfer period. We see our deficiencies, we are having consultations with our coach. Additions will definitely be made. Our executives responsible for transfers are in communication with the technical staff. I think the deficiencies will be completed. There will be 2-3 transfers regarding efficiency. The additions we have made so far have been welcomed by the technical staff, as our coach is playing these players. There are 1-2 players he doesn't play or gives very few minutes to, but they are also players within the squad. We have achieved 90 percent success in transfers. We have deficiencies. Don't we feel as sad as our fans when we lose points? Believe me, we are sadder. As executives, we are here to observe our deficiencies and manage them correctly. A month ago, the width or narrowness of the squad was not being discussed. Having two young people like Semih and Mustafa, one 19 and the other 17, behind Immobile made us very happy. With our backward movement in the points table, now squad depth is being talked about. Everyone is partially right. We have observations regarding this depth, especially in the last 3 matches. We can be more active on the wings. We are aware of everything. Beşiktaş Club will definitely complete its deficiencies."

"IF THINGS ARE GOING BADLY, SOMEONE WILL COME OUT AND BE A CANDIDATE AT THE CONGRESS IN MAY"

Mete Vardar argued that there is a 1 percent malicious community in the Beşiktaş community, saying, "There are malicious people. I have been in the club for 30 years. My father was an executive in Beşiktaş for two terms, and I was for two terms. Today, I see that malicious people are coming to the fore, expressing their thoughts easily, and receiving less reaction than the 99 percent segment. This also saddens me. Since Seba's time, they or their remnants have continued to stay within the community. These are people who feed on evil, who unfortunately say 'let some things go wrong so I can create rent.' We have mistakes. We have mistakes in transfers partially, a little more regarding squad depth, and a little less regarding becoming a team. We will fix these. You are harming Beşiktaş to harm us. Do not feed on evil. Do not create unhappiness for Beşiktaş through us. The community will unite, we will be a whole. We will get out of this business. If things are going badly, someone will come out and be a candidate at the congress in May," he expressed.

Stating that the black-and-white community's unity is mandatory, Mete Vardar said, "We have to lay the foundation for Beşiktaş to be an important European team. While laying this, let our community be with us, let them support us. The attitude of malicious people cannot discourage us. The unity needs to be higher. A march was held before the last match. Tens of thousands of young people consisting of 100 different ideologies outside become their only love, Beşiktaş, when they enter the stadium. We have to spread this unity to the entire community. I ask our fans, eliminate the division," he said.

Stating that his statement "Beşiktaş grows as it is defeated" after the RAMS Başakşehir match was pulled to wrong places, Vardar said, "Beşiktaş does not shrink after matches lost with such referee errors, it does not bow its head. As a community, we grow even more. Beşiktaş grows with defeats caused by external factors. Beşiktaş unites while growing. I wanted to express this," he said.

Explaining that they are trying to make initiatives that will earn income for the club in addition to sporting success in branches outside of football, Vardar said, "Not a single nail has been driven into the club for 25 years. We have provided very valuable contributions regarding the lands in Paşamandıra, Çankırı, and İzmir. For the first time in 25 years, we have brought facilities to the club other than cups. I hope these will be evaluated in time. Serious work is being done regarding real estate," he expressed his opinion.

Emphasizing that the data in the Kartal Yuvası stores is a reflection of the fans' trust in the team, Vardar said, "You need to bring in players who will sell jerseys. I think the trust in the team has an effect on the nearly 50 percent product and 160 percent turnover increase. How many of the departed players' jerseys were sold? There are prominent players in Galatasaray and Fenerbahçe. Children were making their names a slogan. For 6 months, children have been saying 'Rafa Silva'. They are saying our stars of today," he evaluated.