UEFA has launched an investigation into the celebrations of Turkey’s Merih Demiral in their 2-1 win over Austria. Demiral struck twice on Tuesday night to help book a spot for Turkey in the Euro 2024 quarter-finals. However the 26-year-old’s celebration, in which he raised the index and little finger of each hand above his head,
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UEFA has launched an investigation into the celebrations of Turkey’s Merih Demiral in their 2-1 win over Austria.
Demiral struck twice on Tuesday night to help book a spot for Turkey in the Euro 2024 quarter-finals.
However the 26-year-old’s celebration, in which he raised the index and little finger of each hand above his head, has prompted an investigation by the European governing body and if found guilty, the defender could miss the quarter-final encounter against the Netherlands.
Demiral’s celebration was similar to a “Wolf’s Salute”, a gesture associated with the Grey Wolves group, a far-right extremist group in Turkey;an act supporting terrorism.
Ne mutlu Türküm diyene! pic.twitter.com/4K3kVPFxgW
— Merih Demiral (@Merihdemiral) July 2, 2024
The gesture caused an uproar among Austrian fans at the stadium.
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A statement by UEFA read,”In relation to the 2024 UEFA European Championship Round of 16 match between Austria and Türkiye played on 2 July 2024 in Leipzig, Germany, an investigation has been opened in accordance with Article 31(4) of the UEFA Disciplinary Regulations in relation to the alleged inappropriate behaviour of the Turkish Football Federation player, Merih Demiral.”
After the game, the defender explained why he performed the gesture.
“I had a specific celebration in mind, something connected to my Turkish identity. I am incredibly proud to be Turkish, and I felt that pride deeply after scoring.
“I wanted to express that, and I’m very happy I did. Our fans are proud of us. I saw them doing the gesture in the stands, and it made me want to do it even more. I am very happy,” he said.
The Euro 2024 has seen a number of players getting banned, with Albania’s megaphone man Mirlind Daku serving a two match ban after he was found guilty of inciting supporters to chant nationalist songs that denigrated Serbia.
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