Cheetahs of Benin Republic star Junior Olaitan has apologised to Goztepe fans for exchanging jerseys with Super Eagles and Galatasaray striker Victor Osimhen.
Olaitan, who is of Nigerian descent, came face to face with Osimhen at the weekend in the Turkish Super Lig.
Osimhen, continued his impressive scoring run, as he netted the equaliser in Galatasaray’s 3-1 win against Goztepe.
Olaitan was also in action after coming off the bench in the second half.
After the encounter, Olaitan swapped jerseys with Osimhen which, unfortunately, did not go down well with Goztepe fans as he was criticised for his action.
Following the criticism Olaitan (via Joueurs Beninoise on X) took to social media to apologise to his club fans.
“I have a long-standing friendship with Osimhen, who hails from Lagos, Nigeria, and we meet again years later and we exchanged our jerseys.
“I offer my apologies to everyone for having done something that goes against the culture of this club.”
Also Read: Osimhen Inspires Galatasaray’s Win Over Göztepe
Galatasaray, as one of Turkey’s “Big Three” (alongside Fenerbahçe and Beşiktaş), carries immense prestige and a massive fanbase. As for Göztepe, representing İzmir (Turkey’s third-largest city), the club embodies strong regional pride and has a history of gritty, underdog-style play against Istanbul giants.
Matches between them are often charged with local vs. capital-city animosity, similar to how derbies like the Intercontinental Derby (Galatasaray vs. Fenerbahçe) escalate emotions.
Exchanging jerseys could be seen as too “friendly” by ultras or fans, leading to backlash. For instance, in recent clashes like the January 2025 Süper Lig match (which ended 2-1 to Galatasaray amid referee controversy), post-match interactions were minimal, with reports of arguments between players like Kaan Ayhan and Djalma Silva highlighting the friction.