Besiktas may have been well and truly trebucheted out of the Champions League on Wednesday night, losing 8-1 on aggregate to Bayern Munich, but the Turkish side refused to go quietly.
As per usual, the Vodafone Arena was a cauldron of hostility throughout the match despite Bayern sauntering to victory and, as per usual, it looks like Besiktas are going to have to answer a raft of UEFA charges in the aftermath.
Well, this is a fine piece of sports commentary if ever I’ve heard it. #bayern #ucl #besiktas #cats pic.twitter.com/aBFSQ2J72w
— Patrick Campbell (@PTcampbell) March 14, 2018
Indeed, it would appear that, as well as the standard terrace misbehaviour, the Black Eagles have also been stung for allowing a little ginger cat to encroach onto the pitch and disrupt the match for several minutes.
Uefa have charged Besiktas over fans throwing objects at Champions League match v Bayern Munich; with blocked stairways (safety risk), and with “animal on the field of play” – a cat wandered on to the pitch…
— David Conn (@david_conn) March 15, 2018
BREAKING: @UEFA charge @Besiktas for multiple incidents including an animal on the pitch during last night’s @ChampionsLeague game against @FCBayern. #SSN pic.twitter.com/p3JxJd49aq
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) March 15, 2018
Unduly harsh, but hey ho.
That said, the “animal on the pitch” charge isn’t specifically listed in the itemised disciplinary breakdown on UEFA’s official website.
However, it may be included as part of the wider “insufficient organisation” charge levelled against the club.
Still, harsh.