In Saturday Turkish Süper Lig soccer action, Kasımpaşa midfielder Kerem Demirbay was ejected from the match against Trabzonspor after earning consecutive yellow cards in a matter of seconds.
It happened as Demirbay lined up for a free kick in the 90th minute with Trabzonspor holding a 2-1 lead. As referee Ali Yilmaz marked the spot of the kick with some vanishing spray, Demirbay was raring to go with stoppage time approaching and limited time left to tie the match. Yilmaz held his hand up to pause for a second, while Demirbay began motioning and urging Yilmaz to get out of the way.
As Yilmaz was about to move out of the way, he apparently heard Demirbay say something that he didn't like. Yilmaz walked up to Demirbay and gave him a yellow card, at which point Demirbay sarcastically clapped and asked him again to move so he could take the free kick. At that point, Yilmaz gave Demirbay a second yellow card, which translates to a red card and an ejection. Demirbay walked away in disbelief.
UNBELIEVABLE SENDING OFF IN TURKEY 😮
— Men in Blazers (@MenInBlazers) January 24, 2026
Amazing clip out of the Süper Lig, where a player received immediate back-to-back yellow cards for telling the ref to move out of the way for a free kick. Turkish Mike Dean strikes again.pic.twitter.com/3qnoaqouEC
This hardly seems like justification for a red card. Although we do not know exactly what Demirbay said to him, it certainly seems like Yilmaz overreacted here. Given a recent scandal where 7 Super Lig referees were found to have active gambling accounts, this is not a good look.
