Ekrem Dağ Reacts to Referee Decisions in Match Refereed by Halil Umut Meler

In Week 9 of the Trendyol Süper Lig, Rizespor lost 4-3 to Trabzonspor at the Çaykur Didi Stadium. After the match, assistant coach Ekrem Dağ said his team failed to take anything from the game despite aiming for three points, blaming referee decisions.

Dağ recalled that his side had gone 2-0 up in the first half. He said Fabinho was not shown a yellow card in one incident, and that his team's protests were ignored in the second half. In his view, the early goals created a shock effect within the team, which changed the course of the match.

Although Rizespor came back to 3-3 in the second half, Dağ argued there was a clear penalty situation before the 4-3 goal and said VAR should have been brought into play. He said he believed that decision could have changed the result.

Dağ also referred to head coach Recep Uçar being shown a red card. He claimed the referee warned the team through the fourth official and treated them harshly throughout the match. Dağ objected to Halil Umut Meler refereeing the game and also criticized the fact that teams are not given foreign referees.