In a shocking turn of events during a match between Adana Demirspor and Galatasaray in Turkey, the players of Adana Demirspor walked off the pitch in protest over a controversial penalty decision. The penalty was awarded to Galatasaray after Dries Mertens went down in the box following minimal contact from Semih Guler. Alvaro Morata successfully converted the penalty in the 12th minute, but the game took a chaotic turn when the match was suspended in the 34th minute and ultimately abandoned.
The manager of Adana Demirspor, Mustafa Alper Avci, called his players over as Yusuf Barasi received treatment. After a brief pause, the Adana Demirspor players decided to leave the field in protest, prompting the Galatasaray players and the match officials to follow suit. Referee Oguzhan Cakir also left the pitch.
After a 20-minute delay, the stadium announcer confirmed the abandonment of the game, stating that it was due to Adana Demirspor withdrawing from the match. Former Adana Demirspor president, Metin Korkmaz, clarified that the protest was aimed at the Refereeing Committee and not Galatasaray.
The decision to suspend and abandon the game was driven by frustrations over refereeing decisions rather than any on-pitch altercations between the two teams. Galatasaray, who are currently leading the Super Lig by three points, were playing their third match with Morata, who had also scored in a recent 4-1 Turkish Cup win over Boluspor. On the other hand, Adana Demirspor is struggling at the bottom of the table with only five points from 21 league matches this season.
In response to the incident, Fenerbahce, Galatasaray’s closest rivals, took to social media to accuse Galatasaray of irregular practices involving the Turkish Football Federation, media manipulation, and illegal activities. Galatasaray will now shift their focus to their upcoming Europa League match against AZ Alkmaar away on Thursday.
