Dramatic pictures! The selector fainted immediately after the referee's decision, the match was abandoned
Article by Romeo Ene – Published on Tuesday, 31 March 2026, 21:09 / Updated on Tuesday, 31 March 2026 21:09
Big problems for Egemen Korkmaz (43 years old), the selector of the Turkish U21 national team. He fainted during the match against Croatia U21, in the preliminaries of the European Championship, and the match was abandoned.
UPDATE 21:00 » The game has resumed
The game resumed after two hours. Croatia opened the scoring in the 38th minute through Fabijan Krivak.
The original news
The unfortunate event happened in the 34th minute, with the score 0-0, immediately after Demir Ege Tiknaz, his student, saw the red card. The game in Osijek was immediately abandoned.
PHOTO. Dramatic pictures! Turkey U21 national team player collapsed on pitch during match against Croatia U21
Tiknaz had seen the first yellow card in the 22nd minute. Later, he saw the second one (34'), which is why the selector Korkmaz protested.
He lost his balance while yelling at the referee, hit his head on the ground and did not get up, the Turks write.
The doctors intervened urgently, and the selector was transported to the hospital being conscious. It is to be subjected to thorough investigations.
Croatia U21 and Turkey U21 are in Group H, along with Ukraine U21, Hungary U21 and Lithuania U21.
Between Croatia U21 vs. Türkiye U21, Turkish team manager, Egemen Korkmaz sustained a very serious injury (fell seriously ill) and was taken to the hospital by an ambulance that arrived on the field.
The match got suspended afterwards ❌
— LIVE GOALS (@FTLiveGoals) March 31, 2026
Turkish Football Federation press release
The Turkish Football Federation issued a statement in which it provided more details about the coach's condition.
“The coach of our U21 national team, Egemen Korkmaz, slipped in the 35th minute of the U21 European Championship 2027 preliminary match in Osijek, hit his head and lost consciousness.
After the fall, he suffered a swelling on his head. The first intervention was carried out by the medical team at the edge of the field.
Later, conscious, he was transported to the hospital by ambulance for further investigation. We wish him a speedy recovery!”, the Turkish Football Federation said.
