Turkish Player Makes Huge Statement After Refusing to Wear “No to War” T-shirt in League Game

• Aykut Demir, who captains Erzurumspor has highlighted double standards as the reason behind him not wearing a 'No to war' t-shirt ahead of a Turkish second division game
• The 33-year-old was simply wearing his home jersey as Erzurumspor lost 1-0 against Ankaragucu on Sunday, February 27
• Players and supporters have shown solidarity with Ukraine since the Eastern European country was invaded by the Russian military

Turkish Player, Aykut Demir, has explained the reasons behind him not wearing the “No To War” T-shirt in support of Ukraine before a second division game on Sunday, February 27.

The 33-year-old has faced backlash from football supporters for the decision after the striker was spotted on his team’s home jersey while others donned the branded T-shirt.

According to a report via Sports Bible, the Netherlands-born Turkish player highlighted double standards as his reason and said people are suffering daily in the Middle East.

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"Thousands of people die every day in the Middle East, l sad too. I share the pain of innocent people.

"Those who ignore the persecution there are doing these things when it comes to Europe. I did not like to wear the T-shirt because it was not made for those countries."

More controversy trails FIFA ban on Russia

Meanwhile, football supporters and former players are still not fully satisfied with the action taken by FIFA and UEFA on Russia following the invasion by the Russian military on Ukraine.

According to Aljazeera, Russia was expelled from the 2022 World Cup and its teams were suspended from all international football competitions until further notice.

This news has now prompted the reaction of some supporters on social media as some accused the football authorities of double standards.

IbrahimBaacha83 also called for other countries including Israel to face the same faith as Russia

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Another supporter called out FIFA to act on Israel

More Stringent Sanctions As FIFA, UEFA Ban Russian National Teams and Clubs

Earlier, Sports Brief reported FIFA and UEFA have banned the Russian national teams and clubs from participating in all its competitions until further notice following the country’s invasion of Ukraine.

The football governing bodies made the announcement on Monday, February 28 after an emergency meeting of the bureau of the FIFA Council and the Executive Committee of UEFA.

the decision taken means The Europa League last-16 matches between Spartak Moscow and RB Leipzig have been called off with the German club progressing to the quarter-finals.