Football Council: Our derby is unfortunately a big disappointment! | Hey Turkish referees, how did we tolerate you for years?

The huge derby, which has been awaited for months, was finally played on Monday. Galatasaray and Fenerbahçe ended in a goalless draw in the match refereed by foreign referee Slavko Vincic.

Hürriyet writers Uğur Melek, Güntekin Onay, Mehmet Arslan and Fırat Aydınus analyzed the huge derby that ended in a goalless draw at the Football Council.

How would you evaluate Vincic's performance in the derby and the request of other clubs, especially Beşiktaş, for a foreign referee?

MEHMET ARSLAN: SLOVKO VINCIC DIRECTED A MAGNIFICENT MATCH

My feeling while watching the match was; "Hey Turkish referees, how have we tolerated you for years?" We have become accustomed to referees who blow their whistles at the slightest contact, who end a match in 110 minutes, who allow fraud, and who are afraid to show a card to a big team player. No one should criticize the TFF. Vincic refereed a magnificent match. So, long live the Vincics.

GÜNTEKİN ONAY: EVERYONE SHOULD HAVE GOOD INTENTIONS

It wasn't a difficult match for Vincic. We saw that the players respected the authority of the Slovenian referee more than the Turkish referees. If the players are well-intentioned, the referee's job becomes easier. Isn't it time to stop pressuring the referees and focus on the field and the game? In the Beşiktaş -Trabzon match, it was an easy match for the referee when both sides only focused on the game. Of course, the referees are not at the desired level, but some technical staff and players are increasing the pressure on the referees.

UĞUR MELEKE: IF ELITE REFEREES COME THEY WILL CONTRIBUTE

I have repeated several times that it would be beneficial if elite category referees from the big 5 leagues were brought to the Super League. In the Super League, matches last an average of 100 minutes, but the ball remains in play for 51 minutes. Our biggest problem is that the game stops too much. It is played too intermittently. Since our athletes play with too much rest in the Super League, they cannot finish matches against fast-paced opponents in Europe. My expectation from foreign referees is that they increase the playing time to 60 minutes.

FIRAT AYDINUS: THE REAL PROBLEM IS RESPECT AND TRUST

Yes, a derby day was saved. So what awaits us from now on? What does Ferhat Gündoğdu think about this. Or does he need to think about it? Vincic 's management was not that great. He used the advantage of being a foreign referee with the cautious approach of the players. For example, we did not see any collective objection. So the real problem is the lack of respect and trust.

The mountain gave birth to a mouse in Seyrantepe, the derby ended 0-0. What did you think of the derby where the ball stayed in play for 49 minutes and 4 shots were on target?

UĞUR MELEKE: THE LAST TIME THE CITY-LIVERPOOL MATCH WAS 0-0 WAS 7 YEARS AGO

The ball was in play for only 49 of the 96 minutes of gross playing time. If I am not mistaken, there were 35 fouls, 47 throw-ins, 8 goal kicks, and if I am not mistaken, the game was stopped 97 times. There were almost no 5 passes in a row. Of course, you would expect to watch more football in a league's iconic match. In the last 10 matches between Barcelona and Real, there was one 5-2, one 4-1, two 4-0, one 3-2, two 3-1 result. The last time a match ended goalless in El Clasico was in 2019. We all watched the City-Liverpool match just a few days ago. There was boneless football on the field. The last time a match ended 0-0 in that match was 7 years ago. Isn't there pressure there? There is more. Unfortunately, our derby is the big disappointment.

MEHMET ARSLAN: THIS BAD FOOTBALL CANNOT BE EXPLAINED WITH REASONS SUCH AS PRESSURE AND STRESS

I found the fight great but I didn’t like the football that was played. Unfortunately, the mountain gave birth to a mouse in the match that we were waiting for with great excitement. This bad football cannot be explained with some reasons such as pressure and stress. All the leading teams in the world feel the same pressure. But they are not playing badly. It was a derby where fear dominated the field. Okan Buruk said, “Let me not lose”, Jose Mourinho said, “Let’s not concede a goal, let’s score one”.

GÜNTEKİN ONAY: NO ONE WANTS TO WATCH A MATCH WITHOUT A SHOOT ON GOAL

The football played in the derby did not make anyone happy. Football is a visual feast. Entertaining people beyond winning is an important part of this job. Nobody wants to watch a match where no shots are taken on goal or goal opportunities are scored. Nobody wants a basketball match to end 50-45. It is a fact that both teams played good defense, but in the offense, they displayed passive football without taking any risks or increasing their numbers. Even in wrestling, a passive wrestler is given a warning. Such expensive teams should have offered more football to the audience.

FIRAT AYDINUS: THE GOAL EXPECTATION IN A MATCH BETWEEN TWO TEAMS WORTH 520 MILLION EUROS IS ONLY 0.82

First and second in the points table... Two teams competing for the championship... Total market value: 520 million Euros. Total number of foreign players: 33. Total number of national players: 30. Gross duration of the match: 96 minutes. Time the ball was in play: 49 minutes. Expected goal in 96 minutes: 0.82. Number of net positions: 2. Goals: 0. 35 fouls, 7 yellow cards. How was the game? “The referee was foreign, local, good, bad, necessary, unnecessary etc., etc. etc.”

Galatasaray will of course look at the draw more positively as they have maintained the 6 point difference. What is your opinion on Okan Buruk's strategy in the derby?

GÜNTEKİN ONAY: IT IS A MUST FOR OKAN BURUK TO FIND A SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEMS IN THE OFFENSE

Galatasaray has serious problems in creating opportunities in the flowing game recently. When watching the red and yellows, the only goal expectations seem to be set pieces and Victor Osimhen's individual efforts. Barış Alper Yılmaz is very hard-working but not creative or talented. Roland Sallai, who plays on the other wing, is not productive and does not pose a threat to the opponent. Without Dries Mertens, it becomes even more difficult for Galatasaray to create opportunities. Okan Buruk must find a solution to Galatasaray's offensive problems. It is also seen that there has been a major decline in Gabriel Sara. He has not contributed to the score for months.

UĞUR MELEKE: THE PRICE FOR LINEUP FANTASIES THAT DID NOT FIT THE CURRENT SQUAD WAS HEAVY

Okan Buruk's fantasies of formations that did not fit the player list he had were costly: In the Super Cup, he took Dries Mertens out in the second half and switched to 4-4-2, the score was 5-0. Young Boys went out with 4-4-2 with Michy Batshuayi, the Champions League was gone. Malmö lost 2 points with 3 defenders, the chance of direct promotion from the groups was lost. He went out with a trio in the match in Alkmaar and said goodbye to Europe. If these fantasies are now abandoned and he has switched to the classic 4-2-3-1, I think Okan Buruk has crossed a threshold. Of course, a draw in a non-football derby is in Galatasaray's favor.

FIRAT AYDINUS: THE REASON HE PREFERRED THE 4-MAN DEFENSE WAS TO PRESERVE THE 6-POINT DIFFERENCE

The most important factor underlying Okan Buruk's preference for a 4-man defense in the derby was the 6-point advantage and the idea of ​​preserving this point difference even if they did not win. Finally, when we look at the score, we can see that he was successful in this. In fact, when we read the championship struggle of the two teams; we can say that Galatasaray ended a derby without a loss by preserving this difference even if they could not win. With this result, they maintained the distance between themselves and Fenerbahçe. In a way, Galatasaray and Okan Buruk were the sides that got what they wanted in the derby.

MEHMET ARSLAN: OKAN BURUK ENDED THE MATCH TO A GOALLESS RESULT WITH LEMİNA’S CHOICE

It was as good as a draw for Galatasaray. The 6 points plus average advantage would continue. I understand Okan Buruk in this sense. But his 0.12 goal expectation surprised me. He restrained a team with offense in their genes. He tied the match to goalless with his 4-man defense and Mario Lemina preference. I understand his understanding of defense against Fenerbahçe, which has been in form in recent weeks. But I don't agree with his almost never thinking about offense. But you know what they say; "The winner is always right."

Fenerbahçe could not find a chance to close the 6 point gap with the leader Galatasaray in the derby. What did you think of the yellow-navy team's game?

MEHMET ARSLAN: HE WAS NOT BRAVE BECAUSE HE KNEW HOW LOSING WOUNDED

I always approached Jose Mourinho with a critical eye during the first 15 weeks. Fenerbahçe was not making any progress as a team or as individuals. But we started to see the team he had created in the second half. A balanced Fenerbahçe. The Portuguese created a team that did not give the opponent a chance and defended the understanding that winning trophies primarily comes from not losing. He was not brave in the derby... He was not because he knew how losing to Galatasaray would cause wounds and everything he had built would collapse in 1 minute. They could not win the derby but they became a team.

UĞUR MELEKE: I WOULD EXPECT MOURINHO TO PUSH THE WIN A LITTLE HARDER

A Jose Mourinho classic. While he was winning the league with Chelsea in 2004-05, the result of 12 matches was 1-0 and 4 were 0-0... However, I would have expected Fenerbahçe to push for victory a little harder, as they were 6 points behind the leaders Galatasaray. Jose Mourinho made 4 substitutions in the match: He took the defender out and put the defender in. He took the right back out and put the right back in. He took the striker out and put the striker in. He didn't take any positional risks. For example, Irfan Can Kahveci was left on the bench. Even the fact that Anderson Talisca hit the far post and wasted the corner won in the last minute is remarkable.

GÜNTEKİN ONAY: HE SHOULD HAVE FOUND A WAY TO WIN WHEN HE HAD CATCHED GALATASARAY LIKE THIS

Mourinho's initial strategy may have been correct, but he did not make offensive moves to win in the last half hour of the match. He should have found ways to win after catching Galatasaray in a problematic period. Galatasaray has a 7 point average with the two-way average. Mourinho will not face such a match again. I think he should have risked everything and attacked the opponent's goal with all his might. The football Fenerbahçe played was very inadequate, especially in terms of offensive fluidity. It is unacceptable that such an expensive squad could only produce one scramble position.

FIRAT AYDINUS: THERE WAS ALSO THE THOUGHT IN THEIR MIND: 'IF YOU CAN'T WIN, DON'T LOSE'

Especially when the second half is taken into consideration, Fenerbahçe was one step ahead of Galatasaray. This situation was also reflected in the statistics tables. Although Fenerbahçe was the team that needed 3 points more in terms of the shots taken, goal expectations, ball encounters in the penalty area and missed clear opportunities, we still witnessed reflections of the idea of ​​'if you can't win, don't lose' dominating the mindset throughout the game.