Watch: Celtic branded worse than Turkish mid-table sides in extraordinary post-match rant
Turkish broadcaster Onur Yildiz has launched a scathing attack on Celtic following Besiktas’ dramatic 3-2 Europa League defeat at Parkhead, claiming the Scottish champions would struggle to finish in the top ten of Turkey’s Super Lig.
Martin O’Neill’s side secured their first European victory of the campaign on Thursday night, overturning a deficit to inflict Besiktas’ first defeat of the league phase.
The Turkish outfit arrived in Glasgow unbeaten following encounters with Marseille, Hoffenheim and Crystal Palace, but were unable to withstand Celtic’s second-half resurgence.
Despite the Hoops’ impressive comeback, Yildiz was far from complimentary, insisting several Turkish mid-table sides are considerably stronger than Celtic while also criticising Besiktas’ defensive shortcomings.
Speaking on BTV, Yildiz said: “Samet, look. If Celtic played in our league, the Super Lig, and finished in the top ten, I’ll change my name.
“Look, Besiktas played against such a bad team today. During the first half, Nubel (goalkeeper) almost got pneumonia. The ball didn’t reach the man.
“So you take the lead in the second half. You’re saying it’s going to be like a tourist trip. A match you’ll win, and you’ll go home happy and cheerful. It’s like a friendly in an Austrian training camp.
“But something happens to Besiktas away from home, and suddenly the fans start tearing their hair out. Look. Corum, Kocaelispor, Kasimpasa. I dare say these are way, way better teams than Celtic.
“The guys came with a 0-3 record. They were coming to get their first point from us. They got their first win against us. So Besiktas played against such a bad team. It’s time we started talking about the shortcomings.
“So it’s over for Besiktas. The Tulip Period is over. First of all, Besiktas absolutely needed to sign a good central defender. The defence is falling apart. At the start of the season, Haric was the only kid who resisted. Apart from Emirhan, the defence is bad. Djalo is bad. Agbadou is bad. Besiktas conceded their first goal because of him.
“We were shouting from the rooftops that they needed a right-winger. There’s no right-winger either. Why did they keep Cerny on today? How did he last so long? He gets a bit more motivated in this game because of some past incidents.
“There’s an incident, I don’t know if you remember, Cerny was playing for Glasgow Rangers. Glasgow Rangers score a goal against Celtic, Cerny pulled a water bottle from the bench and sprayed it at the Celtic fans. That’s why he was booed every time the ball came to his feet.
“He was booed not only because he played for Rangers, but also because of that incident. But Besiktas’ flaws have now been revealed.”
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