Norwegian referee Espen Eskas has faced scathing criticism from former Turkey international Nihat Kahveci, who described his performance during Fenerbahce’s Europa League clash with Rangers as “scandalous.”
Nihat suggested Eskas should “retire and go eat salmon with his family” following the controversial match.
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Fenerbahce’s frustration stemmed from three disputed penalty decisions, leading to vehement protests from manager Jose Mourinho and his coaching staff.
Mourinho and assistant Salvatore Foti were both shown yellow cards for their on-field demonstrations.
Nihat, a former Real Sociedad player and capped 69 times for Turkey, expressed outrage over the referee’s decisions, which he believes contributed to Fenerbahce’s elimination.
“The Norwegian referee should go back to his home and eat salmon with his family instead of refereeing,” Nihat declared. “His performance was scandalous. Fenerbahce should have had three penalties – it was a refereeing massacre.”
He specifically cited incidents involving Anderson Talisca, Rıdvan Yılmaz, and Mert Hakan Yandaş.
“Did you see the yellow card he gave to Talisca for diving? Rıdvan Yılmaz clearly handled the ball in the box too and there was also a foul on Mert Hakan Yandaş. All three were penalties,” Nihat asserted.
While condemning the referee’s performance, Nihat also acknowledged Fenerbahce’s own shortcomings.
“I felt very sorry for Fenerbahce, but they did the damage to themselves in the first leg. I think Jose Mourinho must regret that first leg very much. And also if you miss three out of five penalties, you deserve to go out,” he concluded.
