Fan power inspires Beşiktaş to sensational 3-3 draw
Thursday, November 24, 2016
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Beşiktaş's passionate fans were there when their players needed them most, reckons Çetin Cem Yılmaz, though a sprinkling of magic from Şenol Güneş also played its part.
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Three goals down 45 minutes into a make-or-break UEFA Champions League match at home – not ideal. Often fans would turn against their team, or else vote with their feet and make an early exit. But sometimes there is something in the air, and the passion (not to mention presence) remains steadfast. So it proved with the Beşiktaş faithful on Wednesday. How they were rewarded.
Going into the interval, the fans summoned the team to the stands, a gesture usually saved for post-victory celebrations. The players gathered and tentatively walked towards them, responding to the clapping with applause of their own. This was a sympathetic wake-up call and show of support. The team duly made their way to the dressing room with a spring in their step.
"We showed the real Beşiktaş in the second 45 minutes," said forward Cenk Tosun, whose acrobatic scissor-kick early in the second half stoked the hosts' comeback fire. "I want to thank our fans. Even when we were 3-0 down, they continued supporting us without stopping for a second."
Cenk, a 46th-minute substitute, also credited boss Şenol Güneş, explaining: "There were some magical words in the dressing room. The coach urged us to forget that the score was 3-0, saying we should start again as if it was 0-0." The modest Güneş downplayed his role, however. "You need hearts, not words, for a comeback like this," he said. "And my players showed great heart."
The Beşiktaş coach added that his side's initial problem had been overenthusiasm, to the extent that some players complained of feeling sick on their way to the stadium amid the excitement of the occasion. The mood changed somewhat as Benfica's young team tore into them, the local optimism all but vanishing by half-time.
Super subs
Cue Cenk's introduction in place of Gökhan Gönül, with Adriano moving to left-back and Andreas Beck taking over on the right. Then Gökhan İnler replaced Tolgay Arslan, deploying his range of incisive long passes and steely defending from midfield.
Suddenly the Black Eagles had urgency, and when they pulled one back the volume on the Beşiktaş fans' "wall of noise" was turned up to 11. Benfica wilted, as boss Rui Vitória conceded: "It's impossible to find an atmosphere or fans like this anywhere. The atmosphere affected us a lot." The resulting 3-3 Group B draw put Beşiktaş within a point of both Benfica and Napoli with one match to play – and for Şenol Güneş's men, that's against bottom outfit Dynamo Kyiv.
Ghost of the İnönü?
It also means that the Turkish champions remain unbeaten in 11 games at the Beşiktaş Park, their home since April and built on the same spot as the iconic İnönü Stadium. That venue had a rich history and was condemned with a heavy heart. The new arena is quickly making up for lost time, though, on this evidence.
