Eboue pelted with missiles in Turkey

Published Nov. 21, 2011 5:12 p.m. ET

foxsports

Supporters of Besiktas are facing a two-match ban after Galatasaray defender Emmanuel Eboue was repeatedly pelted with objects during the Turkish football league derby between the teams.

Video footage of Sunday's game showed the Ivory Coast international being repeatedly hit on the head with objects, including a lighter and a plastic water bottle.

The state-run Anadolu Agency said Monday that Besiktas fans also shouted abuse at Galatasaray midfielder Engin Baytar, while others dismantled seats and threw them at police who tried to intervene.

Galatasaray players and the match officials continued to be pelted with missiles as they left the pitch protected by a line of police shields.

Galatasaray coach Fatih Terim tried to calm Brazilian midfielder Felipe Melo, who was angered by the assault, the agency reported.

The abuse came despite a decision by Turkey's big four clubs, including Galatasaray and Besiktas, not to allow visiting fans to attend games involving them in an effort to prevent violence. Turkey also introduced stringent anti-hooliganism laws in April, including prison terms for unruly fans.

The Star newspaper said Turkey's football federation had filed a formal report about the incident and that Besiktas fans could be barred from attending two home games. It did not cite a source for the report.

Federation and Galatasaray officials were not available for comment.

There were no reports of any arrests.

In September, Turkey came up with a radical solution for tackling crowd violence, banning men from attending games involving clubs that have been sanctioned for unruly behavior and letting only women and children in for free.

Sunday's game ended in 0-0 draw.

Eboue joined Galatasaray from Arsenal in August on a four-year contract.