JUST WHEN TURKISH referee Cuneyt Cakir thought his week couldn’t get any worse, it has emerged that the official is a follower of Real Madrid and Cristiano Ronaldo on Twitter.
As in the Real Madrid who benefited mightily from Cakir’s decision to send off Nani in their Champions League defeat of Manchester United on Tuesday.
‘So what?’ you may ask, ‘so are 7 million others’.
What’s particularly interesting, however, is that Cakir only follows 38 accounts, with Barcelona (and some lad called Messi) the only other non-Turkish team he’s keeping an eye on.
The account hasn’t been officially verified but seems genuine, the most recent post suggesting the beleaguered official decided to quit the social media network due to abuse from fans.
On February 28, following reaction to sending off Bursaspor’s Maurice Edu in a Süper Lig clash, he tweeted, according to our resident Turkish speaker (google translate): Now on twitter withdraw. I do not deserve this insult.
Conspiracy-minded United supporters might also point to the referee following Madrid-based sports newspaper Marca and the Spanish tourist board as further evidence of an unsettling affection for all things Iberian.
Though Cakir couldn’t follow United, even if he wanted to — amazingly — the Red Devils don’t have an verified official Twitter account.
