Emre Belözoğlu: The funeral prayer for Turkish football is about to be read!

MKE Ankaragücü manager Emre Belözoğlu answered questions from students during a session he attended at the Boğaziçi University Sports Summit.

Stating that Turkish football has been going through a difficult period recently, Emre Belözoğlu said, "There is a sociocultural problem. The youth will fix this. Changing Turkish football in its current order is like the sun freezing. Turkish football needs 25-30 years to recover. What we say has no response. I don't think Turkish football is on the operating table. Its funeral prayer is about to be read. I am not very hopeful," he expressed.

Stating that as a society, they have failed to stay within the field of play, Belözoğlu said, "There are idealistic types in Turkish football. A structure must be built where those people's paths are cleared. I am a football-crazy man. More systemic and philosophical changes need to be made. There shouldn't be a new rule every year. If Croatia, with a population of 8 million, can raise champions in all branches, we are doing something wrong. The football climate needs to improve. For this, administrators must feel responsibility. There is currently no potential to achieve this. There are many things that need to change. I hope manager profiles capable of doing this will emerge," he opined.

"BEŞİKTAŞ'S JOB IS NOT EASY"

Emre Belözoğlu also shared his views on the matches they will play against Beşiktaş in the Turkish Cup semi-finals.

Emphasizing that they are doing what they want in terms of play but cannot reflect this on the score, the 43-year-old manager said, "It is not easy to compete with these clubs. The tie is up for grabs. Beşiktaş's job is not easy. We represent Ankaragücü, the master of the cup. We want to reach the final and win the cup. I hope we can make our community experience this. We have done good work. We believe we have the knowledge and skill to take MKE Ankaragücü to Europe," he assessed.

Expressing his happiness at being at MKE Ankaragücü, Belözoğlu said, "The scores are not supporting our game, but I think we can reach better places. I have started to create a mentality that can carry MKE Ankaragücü to Europe. If we win the cup, we will give MKE Ankaragücü a first. I have two more years on my contract. I also grew to love Ankara. I have good friendships. I am very satisfied. I hope the end will be good too," he stated.

"I BELIEVE I WILL WORK AT IMPORTANT TEAMS"

Emre Belözoğlu said he believes he will work at very important teams in Europe.

Regarding a question about his career goal, Belözoğlu said, "I believe that one day I can be a manager who can work at very important teams in Europe. I try to follow where the game is going. I attach great importance to foreign languages. My Italian and English are quite good. If there is no language, there is no transfer of ideas. You cannot convey this to the player through interpreters. You need to touch every person. In this sense, I am trying to improve myself. My connection with the players is very high," he said.

"I HAVE NO FAULT AGAINST FENERBAHÇE" 

Regarding a question about the reaction some yellow-navy fans showed towards him after the match where they eliminated Fenerbahçe in the cup, Emre Belözoğlu made the following assessment:

"I don't think anyone who believes that a manager should receive criticism and heavy insults when they win a match against a team they played for in the past has much football knowledge. This has nothing to do with fairness. I have no fault against Fenerbahçe. I gave my all for my jersey at Fenerbahçe. I have nothing to prove. I am swallowing these criticisms because I am a Fenerbahçe fan."

Finally, Belözoğlu noted that he thinks the appointment of foreign referees in VAR will negatively affect Turkish referees.