It was hoped that this match would be able to unite two sets of people among the current diplomatic crisis between Russia and Turkey. However, unfortunately several inflammatory incidents took place around the game. Firstly stones were thrown at a bus of Lokomotiv Moscow fans and several Twitter accounts associated with Russian football were abused and threatened with violence.
The now infamous vest.
The main incident to capture the headlines though has been a vest worn by Lokomotiv midfielder Dmitry Tarasov. On the vest was an image of Russian President Vladimir Putin with the phrase ‘The Most Polite President’, souvenirs with this phrase are on sale in shops throughout Russia but this particular item has caused a storm.
The defensive midfielder defended his actions:
“It’s my president. I respect him and decided to show that I’m always with him and prepared to give my support.”
“What was written on that shirt was everything that I wanted to say.”
Several Fenerbahçe players reacted to this provocative action and had to be restrained and calmed down. Many Lokomotiv fans and the Russian Football Union executive committee have strongly criticised Tarasov’s actions which should help dampen the situation. Lokomotiv have furthermore issued a statement on their official website saying that Tarasov will be punished for his actions, and that he has hurt both himself and the club.
Political statements are not allowed by UEFA at its competitions meaning Tarasov has landed himself and his club in hot water. Despite the former Tom Tomsk player stating he acted alone, Lokomotiv Moscow could face a large fine or even suspension from competition. Tarasov himself will more than likely be handed a fine (€100,000 is the maximum fine that UEFA hands out to individuals) and a suspension which could be around eight to ten matches, UEFA will announce their verdict in two weeks time.
Tarasov has handled himself terribly and, whilst people may be sympathetic towards Russia in this crisis, there is no place for politics in football. He is likely to be suspended for the return leg next Thursday and, with the score currently 2-0 in Fenerbahçe’s favour, Lokomotiv find themselves in a desperate situation which Tarasov cannot help them with thanks to his own thoughtlessness.
FC Barcelona defender Gerard Pique with his Catalan flag at the end of the Champions League final.
It is worth noting that similar incidents of political references in football have taken place, including the waving of a flag with an image of former Turkish President Mustafa Kemal Atatürk by Fenerbahçe ‘s goalkeeper Volkan Demirel and the planting of a Catalan flag on the pitch by Gerard Pique, no ban was subsequently imposed on Pique, although Barcelona was fined afterwards. It would be interesting to see what UEFA’s stance and punishment would be if a political statement was supposedly less controversial.
Overall Tarasov is clearly the guilty party, his actions are impossible to defend and have possibly cost his team by doing something completely avoidable. However, UEFA must make sure the punishment handed to Lokomotiv and Tarasov is consistent with their previous actions against politics in football.
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