I don’t regret coming to Turkey, Martin Skrtel says after failed coup attempt

ISTANBUL

Fenerbahçe’s new transfer Martin Skrtel has said that he didn’t regret coming to Turkey after the July 15 failed coup attempt. The former Liverpool defender also said he learned about the developments as he was at home watching TV.

“I won’t lie, I thought [about] whether I was making a mistake by coming to Turkey; those thoughts crossed my mind,” Skrtel told Slovakian media, as he added that his family was not in Turkey. 

“My family is still not here with me. If they were here, I would feel different. Everyone called me after the coup attempt and I assured them that I was fine. It’s really not a nice situation to sit in a room and watch the events as if watching a play,” the Slovak footballer said.  

Saying that his personal driver knew “what to do,” Skrtel added that he didn’t have time to travel around Istanbul.

“I have a driver here and he takes me everywhere. He knows what to do very well. I didn’t have time to see Istanbul. Maybe we’ll do it when my family comes here, but we’ll definitely be careful,” he said.