Beşiktaş trashes Galatasaray, Tudor faces uncertain future

ISTANBUL

Defending Spor Toto Super League champion Beşiktaş grabbed a commencing 3-0 victory against Galatasaray in an Istanbul derby on Dec. 2, cutting the gap with its archrival to three points and putting coach Igor Tudor’s job in jeopardy.

The final derby game of the year saw Beşiktaş take care of business in the second half, with Cenk Tosun, Dusko Tosic and Alvaro Negredo scoring for the home side.

The result increased pressure on Galatasaray coach Tudor, whose side failed to win against title contenders this season, with the loss following a home draw against Fenerbahçe, an away loss at Trabzonspor and a humiliating 5-1 defeat at Başakşehir.

The Istanbul club now has a streak of 10 consecutive matches without a derby victory.

Galatasaray, who has not had a win in the last 15 matches against Fenerbahçe, Beşiktaş, Başakşehir or Trabzonspor, managed to draw in only four of those matches.

Beşiktaş was obviously the better side on the pitch, Galatasaray’s Croatian coach said after the game.

“You may win, or you may lose, but you always have to be yourself,” Tudor told a post-game press conference.

“We did not play like Galatasaray today. I saw that my players were affected by the atmosphere and I didn’t like it. It was not the Galatasaray I knew tonight,” he said.

When asked about the losses in the games against title contenders, Tudor said it was not “nice” to have lost 11 points in four games.

“We played an open game against Başakşehir and we lost. Tonight, we played more defensively, but we lost again,” he said.

Many Galatasaray supporters took to social media with the game’s final whistle, calling for Tudor’s sacking.

Many demanded the return of coach Fatih Terim, who was sacked as the Turkish national coach last summer following a scandal involving a scuffle at a kebab house in the resort town of Kuşadası in the Aegean province of Aydın.

Pundits were also harsh on the Galatasaray coach.

“If Galatasaray continues with Tudor, it cannot finish in the top two, let alone be the champion,” former FIFA referee Ahmet Çakar wrote in the daily Sabah. “He is not a coach fit for a major team or big games,” he added.

Galatasaray’s legendary defender and captain Bülent Korkmaz also blamed the coach.

“Beşiktaş deserved the victory all the way. It could have been a lot different, but Tudor’s moves are what prevented this difference from happening,” said Korkmaz, who lifted the UEFA Cup trophy with Galatasaray in 2000.

“Tudor could not make game-changing moves. He should have made two changes to the team just after Beşiktaş had the first goal, but he could not turn the game around after the second goal. He watched the game like the rest us,” he added.