Don’t forget this is a match not a war
Saturday night will see a final unprecedented for a long time.
Until now, it was the points accumulated during the league that determined the champion. Which team would be the top scorer was known beforehand and the fans got used to this result over time and were able to digest it slowly. The puzzle of who would be the champion was rarely delayed until the final games.
Now, this time we are faced with a situation just the opposite.
Saturday night, either Galatasaray or Fenerbahçe is going to win the cup. It will be like a Barcelona-Real Madrid final in Spain. However, unfortunately, we are not Spanish.
We see the event very differently. Tension has increased to a great extent. It has totally turned into a war between the clubs. Football and the match-fixing incident got mixed up. There is an atmosphere as if it will be a life or death struggle.
I have gooseflesh when I think about it.
The reaction coming from the stands the moment Galatasaray lifts the cup, if it beats Fenerbahçe in Kadıköy, makes everybody shiver.
If Galatasaray is defeated and Fenerbahçe wins, how the streets will be stirred comes in front of my eyes, and I also shiver like everybody else.
Can it be just the opposite?
If not all, but can a significant portion of Galatasaray and Fenerbahçe fans act logically and say, “Well, this a football match in the end?”
Really, this is a match. Not the Battle of the Dardanelles.
Moreover, let’s not forget, whatever the result is, it will be forgotten at the end of the day. We will start talking about the next season.
Come, for once, let’s adopt a civilized attitude.
Let’s applaud the champion
Why not?
If Fenerbahçe wins, why should the Galatasaray team not applaud their Fenerbahçe colleagues for their efforts during the cup ceremony?
If Galatasaray wins, can you imagine the kindness, the gentlemanly behavior of Fener standing to applaud this victory? Can you think of the prestige that Fener fans will accumulate for throwing flowers instead of bottles or sharp objects to the pitch?
Am I exaggerating? If you think I’m exaggerating, then we are being too harsh on ourselves. That means we are deeming ourselves as barbarians, disrespectful of others and an uncivilized society.
Whereas, are we any less than others? No, we’re not, as long as we act with some logic.
This cup must be lifted Saturday
According to rules, at the end of the match, the cup must be presented to the winner. To avoid incidents in Kadıköy, options were considered. Until Thursday afternoon, the situation was not clear.
Galatasaray President Ünal Aysal spoke at Ankara University’s Communication Department at a “Football and Its Management” meeting. He answered a student’s question: “Let’s not be afraid [of this]. Let’s not break the rules. Whoever wins should lift the cup.” Another student asked, “Will you applaud if Fenerbahçe wins?” He did not hesitate answering, “Of course, we will congratulate them.”
This is the correct attitude. Why are we afraid of our own selves?
The winner should be awarded the prize. The winner should be applauded. Is there a need for the winner to run away like a thief and organize a celebration the next day only in front of its own fans?
Ünal Aysal took another step to break the ice. He decided to go to the game on Saturday. In previous games, he did not go to any match there on grounds that, “While Aziz Yıldırım is under arrest and he has no means to come to Kadıköy, it would be wrong for me to appear there.”
He changed his mind. His presence at Şükrü Saraçoğlu Stadium is both important for his team and also he is giving important messages to everybody with this stance of his.
I will also go to the game. At first, I wasn’t going to. The reason for this was that even my civilized, close Fenerbahçe friends all of a sudden turn into fanatics. And at the end of every game, regardless of if they win or lose, there were too many curses. I was fed up.
But this time, I could not resist the invitation of my Fenerbahçe friends. They assured me, “Come, no incidents will happen.”
Well, it is a historic final, isn’t it? This match is unprecedented.
Let’s see what we will face at the exit?
