Turkey 3-1 Georgia (Muldur 25′, Guler 65′, Akturkoglu 90+7′ | Mikautadze 32′) WESTFALENSTADION — It is the last minute of the first group stage game for both Turkey and Georgia , so why does it feel like the last days of Rome, an orgy of colour and energy that is pulling 80,000 people into its orbit? A goalkeeper has gone up for an equaliser. Five seconds later, a midfielder is through on goal. None of this is normal and now we never want to watch normal again.
Borussia Dortmund’s Yellow Wall will never change colour permanently, but never can it have made more noise than when it went red for an evening. The opening matches of Euro 2024 have been raucous and rampant, but you’ve not seen or heard anything like this before. The motorways up from the south to Dortmund were filled with cars waving Turkish flags and horns sounding every time they were forced to come to a stop on the lesser roads into the city.
There are an estimated three million people of Turkish descent in Germany. They could have sold out the Westfalenstadion several times over. Those inside made enough noise for each of those absent.
Uefa charges will land, and they will be appropriate. We cannot laud the best bits and ignore the worst and call ourselves true witnesses. The violence before the game , when Turkish and Georgian supporters taunted each other and then rushed together, forced armed police to intervene.
That is unacceptable, crossing the line with a generous leap. Read Next I urge Engl.
