Controversial statement from Hakan Keleş after Galatasaray match: 'You realize you cannot win with the fouls the referee calls'

TÜMOSAN Konyaspor Manager Hakan Keleş, whose team was defeated 3-0 by Galatasaray in their away match during the 19th week of the Süper Lig, stated that they could not perform as they had hoped and that they were sad about the loss.

Keleş made statements at the press conference held after the match at RAMS Park.

Explaining that they experienced difficulties due to the difference in squad quality, Keleş said, "We are sad because we lost. We wanted to win. We had prepared well. In the first half, we played the game we wanted at times. We had chances at the beginning of the second half. We did not want to leave space for Galatasaray in the first half. We tried to be effective with passes behind the defense. We had problems with the final passes there. We had chances in the second half. If we could have taken the lead, it would have been a different match. Then we conceded the goal. After falling behind, we had trouble due to the crowd pressure and squad quality. Even though we tried to intervene in the game, we suffered from our squad quality and issues with alternative players. We lost 3-0 after the goals we conceded later."

Stating that they will face three Istanbul teams in a row away from home, the green-and-white team's manager said, "We are going through a difficult period. We will play three consecutive away matches in Istanbul. We will play against Fenerbahçe and İstanbulspor after this. The points we collect until the transfer window will be an advantage for us. Now we will prepare for the Fenerbahçe match. We were bad in terms of our play today. We could not reflect what we wanted onto the pitch. I wish Galatasaray success in their upcoming matches."

"DENİZ PUT IN AN INCREDIBLE PERFORMANCE"

Hakan Keleş praised the performance of 18-year-old goalkeeper Deniz Ertaş, who played his first Süper Lig match of his career.

Stating that French goalkeeper Paul Bernardoni and Sokol Cikalleshi were excluded from the squad by the management's decision before the match, Keleş said regarding Deniz's performance, "Deniz put in an incredible performance. We are pleased. He made good use of the chance he was given. We will continue with him during this process. I also congratulated him for putting in a good match."

"YOU REALIZE YOU CANNOT WIN WITH THE FOULS THE REFEREE CALLS"

Konyaspor Manager Keleş argued that fouls were not called in their favor after the first goal.

Claiming that a foul should have been called in their favor during the incident between Louka Prip and Barış Alper Yılmaz, Keleş assessed, "The fourth official said 'foul,' but the referee did not call a foul. From time to time, you realize that you cannot win with the fouls the referee calls. I don't talk too much about the referee, but in such matches, referees use their discretionary power. One shouldn't pin the match on a single foul, but it was a period where we were playing well."

News Source: AA