Footballer denies he will remove his tattoos after PM Erdoğan's rebuke

ISTANBUL

A Turkish footballer has denied reports suggesting that he accepted to remove his tattoos, following a rebuke by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

"Please don't take every article in the media seriously. I neither considered nor told that I would remove my tattoos. Each of them has a special meaning to me," 18-year-old Galatasaray footballer Berk Yıldız tweeted.

Erdoğan had visited the facilities of the Turkish national football team in Istanbul’s Beykoz district on July 4. He was met there by Turkish Football Association Chairman Yıldırım Demirören and national team coach Fatih Terim, and briefly chatted with the young players who were waiting for him at the entrance.

After arriving, the prime minister rebuked Yıldız over his tattoos. “What are these tattoos? Why do you harm your body like that,” Erdoğan said. “Don’t be fooled by foreigners. God forbid, it could even give you skin cancer in the future.”

Citing unnamed sources, Doğan News Agency had reported that Yıldız promised Erdoğan to remove his tattoos.

Yıldız explained in his tweets that some of his tattoos represent his family. "We have a humorous chat with my coach and our prime minister. Everyone has a choice and I am happy as such," he added.