Sports writers evaluate the Sparta Prague - Galatasaray match: 'Those who see themselves in a funhouse mirror'

In the second leg of the UEFA Europa League play-off round, Galatasaray was defeated 4-1 away by Sparta Prague.

While the Yellow-Reds bid farewell to Europe with this result, a scuffle broke out between the players and technical staff of both teams after the final whistle.

The match referee, Anthony Taylor, showed a red card to Galatasaray Manager Okan Buruk.

Sports writers evaluated the Sparta Prague – Galatasaray match.

The writers commented on the eventful match as follows;

UĞUR MELEKE: EVERY RIGHT WINGER BECOMING A STAR AGAINST GALATASARAY

Almost every right-winger of the teams playing against Berkan becomes a star: Sorescu from Gaziantep, Zeki Yavru from Samsun, Preciado from Sparta Prague, Olatunji, and Tuci who came on later... Preciado, who has a total of 1 goal in all competitions this season, played with 2 goals and 1 assist in 180 minutes against Galatasaray. I don't think this can be a coincidence. Another weakness in Galatasaray's European adventure this season has been their overly passive behavior in matches where a draw was considered sufficient. There was an issue with appetite in the Copenhagen away game. Yesterday, after the score became 1-1 in the 16th minute, the team seemed as if they had taken a sedative, especially between the 46th and 70th minutes. Unfortunately, this overly protective attitude handed the round to Sparta Prague. (HÜRRİYET)

ENGİN KEHALE: THE WORST 45 MINUTES OF THE YEAR AND THE LACK OF FULL-BACKS

The discussions throughout the season revolving around the weaknesses of Angelino and Kazımcan at left-back did not really take into account that Galatasaray would experience speed and positioning problems in a scenario where neither was present. Undoubtedly, if Köhn had made it to the European squad list, we would be reading the lines of a different match report today. After falling behind early, the quick reaction and the goal we found from a set-piece with Abdülkerim allowed Galatasaray to control the game for the remainder of the first half. The match, which could have gone in a completely different direction if Anthony Taylor had blown the whistle on Barış Alper's position, turned into a nightmare in the second half. Although the Yellow-Reds managed to complete the traditional 45-60 minute dip in tempo without giving the opponent a score disadvantage, the balance was completely disrupted by Kaan's red card. (HÜRRİYET)

ERMAN ÖZGÜR: IT DID NOT SUIT THE LIONS

While Sparta Prague's moves paid off very quickly following the red card, Okan Buruk's moves did not add anything to Galatasaray's game for the first time. Besides leaving the team short-handed, Kaan Ayhan's side also became weak when he was no longer defending that flank. Berkan made very significant mistakes in the Zeleny and Tuci goals, and Davinson Sanchez in the Haraslin goal. But most importantly, it was the fact that Galatasaray, which was also short-handed in the first match, could not provide the same reaction away from home. Kuchta delivered the final blow to our disorganized appearance. The performance in the second leg, the individual errors, and Kaan Ayhan's amateurism did not suit Galatasaray at all, and this squad, which seemed to have outgrown Turkey, has closed its European chapter. (FANATİK)

SERKAN AKCAN: INDIVIDUAL ERROR!

Individual errors by Galatasaray players, starting from the full-backs, kept the momentum in Prague's favor. The heaviness that could be attributed to Kaan Ayhan's injury, the red card he received shortly after, followed by Berkan's mistake in the left-back defense, and Prague's second goal. Unfortunately, if you are aiming for the final rounds in the Europa League, your full-backs must be close to ideal. It is wrong to pin the blame on a single name. Berkan left his area empty on the first goal, and defensive weakness was the protagonist in the second. But the Galatasaray management should have completed the Köhn transfer and registered him on the UEFA list. (FANATİK)

LEVENT TÜZEMEN: THOSE WHO SEE THEMSELVES IN A FUNHOUSE MIRROR

The red-card foul committed by Kaan Ayhan was pure lack of seriousness. Coach Okan could not intervene correctly in the game. Taking out the combative Kerem and the playmaker Mertens to bring in Zaha and Oliveira suddenly disrupted Galatasaray's balance. Oliveira is not fully ready. If Kerem is to come out and Zaha is to come in, he shouldn't come in at all. Even a dead Kerem runs and fights more than Zaha. The fourth goal Prague scored was entirely a gift from Zaha. After these two wrong substitutions, Galatasaray, left with 10 men, conceded 3 goals after consecutive positional errors and turnovers. I am warning you; if Zaha, Ziyech, and N'Dombele are going to just lie around, they should not become rotten apples. Not being able to register Köhn for Europe and Aurier arriving injured are transfer mistakes. If Köhn had been there, it would have made a lot of difference. Coach Okan should continue with players who will fight in the league and the cup, and should not give too much face to those who see themselves in a funhouse mirror. (SABAH)

BÜLENT TİMURLENK: SAFETY-PIN MEN

Two of the three possibilities of the game were in Okan Buruk's team's pocket, but it didn't happen... And for it not to happen, Galatasaray had accumulated enough reasons on their own front to come to this round. With two full-backs missing and playing with men held together by safety pins against a tough opponent like S. Prague, whose talent might be debatable but who are physically strong, the burden of playing 10 men for half an hour in both matches led to a farewell letter to Europe. Yesterday, after the first goal, when Abdülkerim's header kept the game in check, Buruk's team should not have forgiven the opponent. The applause-worthy performances of Sanchez and Abdülkerim were not enough. Kerem losing 6 duels in the first half, the simple passing errors and turnovers in the goals conceded as well as the ones the opponent missed, caused Buruk his heaviest away defeat this season. In the minutes when the connection with Zaha-Icardi-Tete was broken and Sergio was left alone in midfield, Buruk had fired all his bullets, but the person responsible for this farewell is the harakiri committed by the management that could not get the two full-backs ready for this round... (SABAH)

News Source: 12punto