A commentator at Turkish broadcaster TRT was sacked midway through Canada’s game against Morocco for mentioning the name of Hakan Sukur.
Alper Bakırcıgil had said “Hakan Şükür scored the fastest goal in all World Cup tournaments” as he reminisced about Canada’s Alphonso Davies fastest goal of the tournament so far.
While he donned the White and Red jersey of his nation, Sukur was one of the legends of Turkish soccer. He scored 51 times in his 112 appearances for Turkey.
However, after his retirement, he entered politics and was later linked with terrorism. He is known to be one of the staunch supporters of the U.S.-based Islamic preacher Fethullah Gülen, an ally-turned-foe of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).
Sukur and his family then fled to the United States after he was accused of playing a role in a failed coup attempt in 2016.
Bakircigil later bid farewell on Twitter saying: “I was cut off from the TRT institution, where I worked proudly for many years, after the event that took place today. Separation is included in love. Hope to see you again. Goodbye..”
