Fifa’s Swiss President Blatter Acts as a Fan, Not

Written by Administrator

Wednesday, 30 November 2005

Turkey's state minister responsible for sports, Mehmet Ali Sahin, criticised Blatter for speaking like a Swiss fan. "I am disappointed to hear the statement of the FIFA president before the reports of the match are unveiled. "He spoke as a Swiss fan instead of as a president... These kinds of statements are misleading the decision-makers," Sahin said. He did, however, say he was disappointed by the behavior of some Turkish fans. * According to the Turkish media, FIFA’s president is a ‘holigan’ Kezban TUZCU and Kerem ALTUSUK (JTW, ANKARA and BERN) - Following the scuffle between the Turkish and Swiss football teams that occurred after Wednesday night's match, FIFA's Swiss President Se pp Blatter blamed Turkey for anything happened. Blatter without reading any match report argued that Turkey will be excluded from the international tournaments. UEFA's Turkish vice president Senes Erzik said he was "stunned" by the blame put on the Turkish team by the FIFA president even before reports were written over the incident. "It is the first time in my 25-year career in FIFA and UEFA that I have seen the FIFA presidency make a statement like this, particularly on disciplinary issues," Senez Erzik said. "I conveyed my amazement to Mr. Blatter earlier today" he added. Blatter threatened to ban Turkey from the 2010 World Cup and ordered a probe into the incident. Turkey won the match 4-2, but failed to qualify on the away goals rule, having lost the first leg 2-0 in Bern on Saturday. The Turkish Soccer Federation had complained that Swiss fans jeered their national anthem in the Bern first leg and Turkish players had been abused after last Saturday's match. Blatter told Reuters events in Bern will also be investigated. Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Ali Sahin, who oversees sports, said Blatter, who is Swiss, acted "not as the president of FIFA, but as a Swiss fan. I cannot accept that Turkey be singled out as the guilty party," Sahin said. "The incidents developed suddenly, independently of the security measures... This often happens at matches. If you exaggerate this, you mix politics and sports." Turkish Football Federation President Levent Bicakci said, "We believe that if any sanction is to be imposed on us... the same sanction should be imposed on Switzerland." Sahin said, however, that both sides were responsible for "behavior after the match that has nothing to do with professionalism." Swiss Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey on the other hand sent a letter of complaint to the Turkish government, calling the events "unacceptable behaviour". TERIM: “THERE IS PREJUDICE AGAINST TURKEY” Turkey coach Fatih Terim called for unity after FIFA launched an investigation of violent incidents following a World Cup match against Switzerland and said the soccer world was prejudiced against Turkey. "As a country everyone must do their duty down to the smallest detail. We must act together," Terim said on Friday. "There is prejudice against Turkey and rival countries use this to their own advantage even if nothing has happened." TURKISH MEDIA ACCUSES BLATTER: HOLIGAN CHAIRMAN "He's gone crazy. Fifa's Swiss president Blatter spits hatred," the headline in Fotomac sports paper said. Its front page was a photo-montage of Blatter's head impaled on the corkscrew of a Swiss army knife. "Hooligan Chairman. Blatter blames Turkey like a fanatical fan," Vatan daily said. But it said Turkey was also at fault, publishing photos of assistant coach Mehmet Ozdilek tripping up Swiss defender Valon Behrami as he left the pitch. On Wednesday Swiss player Benjamin Huggel was seen kicking out at Turkey's assistant coach Mehmet Ozdilek as he left the pitch. The Turkish TV channels have showed the live pictures many times after the match. Team spokesman Pierre Benoit claimed: "We haven't seen the pictures yet, so we're not making any statement. According to the Turkish media comments, the FIFA President and Switzerland won the match on the table.

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