The referee beaten in Turkey named the main culprit in the incident

On December 11, after the Turkish Championship match between Ankaragucu and Rizespor, match referee Halil Umut Meler was attacked by the president of the first team, Faruk Koca.

In an interview with Hürriyet, he said that Ankaragucu coach Ilhan Palut was responsible for the attack on him, who allegedly provoked his team and pointed out refereeing errors.

“I saw how the coach was holding Emre Belezoglu with his hands. Then at one point the attacker hit me with his fist on the left side of my face. I found myself on the ground and I don’t remember what happened next.

Only the coach caused this situation. Nobody else. Belezoglu could have expressed his opinion about my work if he thought that I had made a mistake. Belezoglu may also be related to this incident, since he already had a conflict with me in 2018,” he said.