Emre Belözoğlu's Galatasaray admission!

MKE Ankaragücü hosted Galatasaray on their home turf in the 26th week of the Süper Lig.

The Yellow-Reds defeated their opponent 3-0 with goals from Kerem Demirbay, Sanchez, and a penalty by Icardi in the first half, reclaiming the top spot in the league.

Speaking to the broadcaster beINSports, MKE Ankaragücü Manager Emre Belözoğlu evaluated the Galatasaray defeat.

Belözoğlu's statements are as follows;

"First of all, Galatasaray played very dominantly in the first 15-20 minute period. The areas we worked on were through the center. They applied this against Bayern. They can easily apply this against teams like us. Unfortunately, this is the fate of being a manager. These are the subjects we worked on. We had worked on set pieces. What was actually important today was to be able to continue the game. The group of players went into shock after the first 2 goals. I have a team that wants to fight. We met with our fans. There are realities we must accept. Galatasaray is a team far above this league. In terms of player quality, I don't know, it might be the best squad in Galatasaray's history. As a player or a manager, I have never played against a group of players at such a high level. If we hadn't conceded such simple, such easy goals, if we could have stayed in the game, things could have gone the way we wanted. I am sad, I am sad. The responsibility is mine. I apologize."

"GALATASARAY IS A TEAM THAT HAS ESTABLISHED DOMINANCE OVER BAYERN MUNICH"

Speaking at the press conference held after the match, Belözoğlu explained that they did not expect to start the match poorly in front of an enthusiastic crowd, and noted the following:

"Galatasaray is a team that has established dominance even at the Champions League level, even against Bayern Munich, once they entered toward the center. Our pitch is in poor condition at home, two balls played toward the center... The responsibility is mine. While I thought I had prepared my players well, they also went into shock with the two goals. Galatasaray is a good team. They experienced a similar result in the Samsunspor match as well. They are a team that capitalizes on simple mistakes. I am sad. We have to fight with our own reality. I want to put this team in a position that will bring them comfort as soon as possible. Our goal is to concentrate on the league and then perform well in the cup as well. I am truly very sad for today."

Commenting on Galatasaray Manager Okan Buruk's positive remarks about the pitch, Belözoğlu said, "I don't see any difference from the past. The pitch is the same as the previous one. Okan brother played on it for the first time. I thank those who put in the effort to improve it, but the pitch is still bad. It might recover a bit more during the 11-12 day break."

KAZIMCAN KARATAŞ STATEMENT

Emphasizing that Galatasaray scored from the areas they had worked on, Belözoğlu spoke as follows when reminded that Kazımcan Karataş, whom they loaned from the Yellow-Red team, received reactions from the stands and social media:

"I want our fans to stand by my players until the last minute. I feel the interest our fans show me. They also need to support Kazımcan. They are young, clean children. The poisoning that social media has caused in the country puts pressure on the children. Mistakes happen, the responsibility is mine. I give the player a chance and he tries to do his best. He might make a mistake against the team he played for in the past. Everyone has honor, it is not right to pull the mistake to this side. Unfortunately, football is such a profession in this country. They will learn to fight this. I will not point out any of our players' mistakes; we lost as a team. The responsibility belongs to Emre Belözoğlu. I cannot accept insinuations being made about my players. I know they want success. I hope I want to fulfill the promise I made to them. I don't care who says what, it is enough that the Ankaragücü fans support them. Young footballers cannot be fed inside this cesspool on social media, they must do their best."

"WE HAVE A GOAL IN THE CUP"

Touching upon the match they will play against Fenerbahçe in the quarter-finals of the Ziraat Turkish Cup, Belözoğlu stated, "We have a goal in the cup, we have a club legacy. We will play against one of the two strongest teams in the league. We want to continue in the cup. We need to work very hard. I think we can overcome this difficult process as a whole with my players."

Claiming that the points in the Süper Lig are close and that even the team in 6th place could be relegated, Belözoğlu conveyed that the new transfers are eager but need to adapt to the league as soon as possible.

"I know that if I am here at the beginning of the season, I will build a very different team," said Belözoğlu, adding, "The current players are actually giving good energy as well. We haven't experienced a bad process except for the last 3-4 weeks. I think if the players we have do their best, we will get out of this situation. I want to establish a system where our players realize their own strength."

Belözoğlu added that he was not satisfied with the performance of Garry Rodrigues, who was not in the match squad, and that he could give a jersey to any player who is good in training.