Galatasaray party like it's 199...3
Yesterday evening Galatasary transported us back 31 years to one of the glory moments in the modernisation of world football.
It's late Sunday evening at the Sanliurfa GAP Stadium in the south of Turkey, near the border with Syria, and the latest installment in one of football's great rivalries is about to kick off — it's been a day of them. Rangers have just celebrated a 3-3 "win" over Celtic in the Old Firm, while Feyenoord have put 6 past their glamorous Amsterdam rivals in De Klassieker.
When the referee blows his whistle to start The Intercontinental Derby, Galatasary have the ball, they pass it side to side and back again, inside their own half and along their backline for about 45 seconds. Then, in another nod to 90s football, their centre back launches a long ball straight up the middle of the field, it's headed into Fenerbahce box and finds it's way to Mario Icardi.
The Argentian striker — doing what his wife has always promised — finishes from a tight angle on the right, slotting the ball low and across the keeper inside the left-hand upright.
50 seconds gone. 1-0 to Galatasaray. Game over.
In scenes not too dissimilar to a lunchtime match after the bell has gone — our reporter's Turkish is a little scratchy, but he is adamant someone shouted "last goal wins" — or, in fact, the ill-fated FIFA introduction from 1993 which promised to spice up finals, this did in fact turn out to be a golden goal.
Before the game could restart, Fenerbahce walked off the pitch, conceding the Turkish Super Cup to their greatest adversaries, and sending their fans back to Istanbul on the second half of their 2,500km round journey with a bit of spare time on their hands.
As fans from both teams slowly left their seats, Esmer Yarim could be heard playing softly over the stadium PA system.