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Fener top as bailiffs move in on Goztepe
Fenerbahce moved to the top of the Super League by crushing Göztepe in
Izmir on Friday evening but the result was overshadowed by sensational events both before and after the game, as
bailiffs invaded the Ataturk stadium and tried to seize Göztepe's kit. "Nobody knows what we went through
before the match," said Göztepe manager Riza Calimbay. "First, Peter Kabat was going back to his
own country but I persuaded him to turn out. He's leaving us tomorrow." Hungarian forward Kabat is walking
out on Göztepe because he has not been paid since the beginning of the season. "Second," Calimbay
continued, "and I say the people who did this are uncivilised, before the kick off, two bailiffs and a policeman
arrived in the changing room. "They wanted to confiscate our team strip and boots. We only got onto the pitch
by pushing them out of the way." The bailiffs were sent in by second division clubs Istanbul Municipality
and Erzurumspor, who are still owed money by Göztepe for close season transfers. They seized the turnstile
receipts but when it turned out that they were insufficient to meet the debts, they tried to grab the kit as well.
Asked whether he intended to resign, Calimbay refused to answer directly but lashed out at the club's administration
over Friday's events. "I brought this team to this level from nothing," he claimed, "but somebody
has to help us." "Who will stop these things from happening? The board has to do it. This is a shame
for those who allowed this to happen and those who did it." Although Calimbay refused to blame the pre-match
upset for his team's poor form, the game itself was something of a procession. First half goals by Zoran Mirkovic,
Ceyhun Eris and Hakan Bayraktar had Fener in total control by the interval. The Yellow Canaries eased off in the
second half but two late strikes by sub Serhat Akin turned a convincing victory into a rout. "Goztepe have
a young, hard-working team which has achieved good results," Fener manager Mustafa Denizli pointed out. "In
spite of the weather conditions, we played well today. We were brilliant in patches. We made mistakes but week
by week they are becoming fewer."
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