Fener finds courage in 5-0 win

Istanbul’s Fenerbahçe found some relief in a stunning 5-0 win against a strong Kardemir Karabükspor on Oct. 30 at home, following a historically bad start to the Turkish league.

Fener coach Dick Advocaat was happy with the win but poor attendance at the game bothered the experienced Dutchman. 

“I was disappointed with the little interest by the fans. The team needs them,” he said, hoping that the big win would attract more to the next game. 

Robin van Persie broke the deadlock with a penalty kick in the 18th minute, 10 minutes before Karabük’s Ceyhun Gülselam was sent off for a second yellow. Martin Skrtel, who came to Istanbul from Liverpool during the summer transfer window, scored his first goal for Fener just before the interval.

It was an easy second half for the Istanbul side as well as against 10-man Karabük, and a much criticized van Persie made things even easier when he scored his second goal in the 48th minute. 

A second consecutive win ensured Fener retained fifth spot in the standings. 

Meanwhile, Fenerbahçe Chairman Aziz Yıldırım, who was acquitted in a massive rigging case, has welcomed a Supreme Court of Appeals approval of his acquittal from another case over “obtaining classified information.” 
Yıldırım is now waiting for an approval for his acquittal in the match-fixing case.

He was convicted on charges of match-fixing in 2013 and was imprisoned for nearly a year in a case that deeply shook Turkish football. He was acquitted in a retrial that began in 2014.

Yıldırım accused the followers of Fethullah Gülen, the leading suspect in the July 15 coup attempt in Turkey, of plotting against him. 

Ali Koç, a former official of Turkey’s Fenerbahçe and a third-generation member of Turkey’s wealthiest family, has confirmed he will run as a candidate in a bid to replace the Istanbul-based club’s chairman in a general assembly in 2018.