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Beşiktaş Vice-President Hakan Daltaban Slams Referee Over Victor Osimhen Incident
Beşiktaş vice-president Hakan Daltaban has criticised the referee’s decision not to send off Victor Osimhen during Saturday night’s Istanbul derby.
Beşiktaş suffered a narrow 1–0 defeat to Galatasaray, with Osimhen scoring the decisive goal late in the first half of the keenly contested encounter.
The Nigeria national football team striker was shown a yellow card as early as the sixth minute after colliding with Beşiktaş goalkeeper Ersin Destanoğlu.
However, the forward remained on the pitch for the full duration of the match despite another controversial moment when he deliberately kicked the ball away following a stoppage in play, an action that could have resulted in a second booking.
Reacting after the game, Daltaban claimed the referee made several incorrect decisions during the derby.
“The captain has the authority to speak on behalf of the team. The referee gave our captain a yellow card for his protest. That was the correct decision. Osimhen, who didn’t receive a second yellow card after his first, kicked the ball after the game had stopped,” Daltaban told the club’s official website.
“The referee saw through it. The referee tried not to see it. I felt ashamed for the referee. There was a player on the field who defied authority and wasn’t afraid of receiving a second card.”
Daltaban also questioned the role of the Video Assistant Referee system in the match, arguing that technology should have helped officials make the correct decision.
“There’s something called VAR, there’s technology. You see the position. You rewind and fast-forward. Nobody can tell us not to see it. If I were appointed as the VAR referee for this match, I would be ashamed and say I couldn’t do that much, and I would give the red card,” he said.
Despite the controversy, Osimhen’s goal proved decisive as Galatasaray secured victory in the Istanbul derby.
