Beckham Tells Fans not to Travel for Qualifier in Istanbul

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Wednesday, September 10, 2003

Beckham Tells Fans not to Travel for Qualifier in Istanbul

David Beckham warned supporters on Tuesday that they had better stay at home instead of traveling to Istanbul for next month's high-risk Euro 2004 qualifier between England and Turkey.

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David Beckham warned supporters on Tuesday that they had better stay at home instead of traveling to Istanbul for next month's high-risk Euro 2004 qualifier between England and Turkey.

The England captain said that there would be "a volatile atmosphere" for the crunch match which would decide if England could qualify for the finals as group winners.

"I think my advice to the fans would be to listen to what people are saying," he told a press conference in Manchester where England will host Liechtenstein in a qualifier on Wednesday.

"We definitely don't want anyone getting hurt," Beckham added.

The England Football Association (FA) has urged fans not to travel to Istanbul in fear of the recurrence of crowd trouble, which marred the first tie between the two teams in Sunderland in April.

UEFA, the sport's European ruling body, imposed a heavy fine upon England after that match, and warned that England would be kicked out of the Euro 2004 finals, given that they qualify, in case of any further misbehavior by England supporters.

England FA responded by not taking up any tickets for the away qualifying matches in Macedonia and Turkey, and urging the fans to stay at home.

Much to the FA's great disappointment, several hundred fans ignored their pleas and showed up in Saturday's qualifier in Macedonia by buying black market tickets.

The FA's further disappointment, however, came from Beckham, who led other players to greet the England supporters at the end of the match, which England won 2-1.

But Beckham justified his behavior by saying that it was "the natural thing to do when you see your own fans".

It would be a nightmare for FA if supporters continued to ignore their pleas for the Turkey clash, given that the ill feelings between fans of both sides had run deep in the past.

The most serious incident came three years ago when two Leeds supporters were stabbed to death before a UEFA Cup tie against Istanbul club Galatasaray.

"It is nothing against Turkey, because it's a beautiful country with beautiful people over there but things can get heated," said Beckham.

"If the message to the fans is to stay, then maybe they should listen," he added.

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