Turkey vs Soviet Union (lost radio coverage of international football matches; 1935)

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Turkeyvssovietunion19351.jpg

The Soviet Union team prior to the 25th October match.

Status: Lost

Between 13th-27th October 1935, Turkey hosted the Soviet Union for six friendly international football matches played in the cities of Istanbul, Ankara, and Izmir. The visitors enjoyed an unbeaten record, having been victorious in three and drawing the rest. The games are also historic for being the first overseas football matches to receive live Soviet radio commentary.

Background

Turkey held a special place in Soviet football, for it became the first nation to play the Soviet Union following the USSR's formation and the Russian Civil War.[1][2] The encounter, held on 16th November 1924, saw the Soviet Union achieve a 3-0 home victory.[1][2] Despite the Soviet Union not being a FIFA member, Turkey continually flaunted FIFA's instructions not to play against them, with further encounters commencing in 1925 and the 1930s.[2] For the 1935 games, the Soviet Union would travel to three Turkish cities.[3][2] The first, held on 13th and 15th October, occurred at the Şükrü Saracoğlu and Taksim Stadiums in Istanbul respectively.[4][5][3] The 19th and 21st clashes would commence at Ankara's Ankaragucu Stadium.[6][7][3][2] Finally, the 25th and 27th matches saw the teams play at Alsandzhak Stadium in Izmir.[8][9][3][2] The schedule was therefore extensive, saved only by a four-day rest before travelling to the next city.[3]

Six years prior, the Soviet Union conducted their first live radio coverage of a football match, which pitted Moscow against Ukrainian SSR on 26th May 1929.[10][11] A Moscow team and the Soviet Union's home matches against Turkey on 17th and 20th August 1931 respectively were the first international games to be broadcast, courtesy of Ivan Savostyanov.[11] But by 1935, the Soviet Union had yet to conduct any football coverage from overseas.[12][13][11] Considering the Soviet Union's hyped six-match campaign in Turkey, it was decided that the time was right to expand coverage, with All-Union Radio enlisting Vadim Sinyavsky to fulfil commentary duties.[12][13] After initially providing gymnastics lessons in July 1929, Sinyavsky soon became the most prominent Soviet sports commentator, including for major football, athletics and cycling events.[12][13][10] His knowledge of a range of sports was another reason he was selected, since not only would he cover the six matches, but he would additionally report on Turkish fencing and wrestling events.[12]

With another milestone reached, All-Union Radio would broadcast other overseas matches.[13][12][11] Following the Second World War, Sinyavsky was the announcer for Dynamo Moscow's 1945 matches in the United Kingdom, with his commentaries of the Arsenal and Chelsea matches being among his most famous.[13][12] He was also the commentator for the first match to be televised live in the Soviet Union, which saw Dynamo beat CDKA Moscow 3-1 on 2nd May 1949.[14][11] Another Turkey-Soviet Union game, held on 12th November 1961 for a 1962 FIFA World Cup spot, was also historic as it was the first to be televised live in Turkey.[15]

The Matches

13th October

Football in USSR forum user DynamoFan75 compiled a list of comprehensive match reports for each game.[4][5][6][7][8][9] The first match occurred on 13th October at the Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium, just after it had hosted some tennis matches.[16][4][2] In a well-anticipated match, the stadium reportedly doubled its maximum advertised capacity of 10,000, with many other hopeful fans being turned away.[16][4][2] The game itself was attended by prominent Turkish and Soviet officials, including, but not limited to, the Soviet Ambassador to Turkey L.M. Karakhan; Chairman of the Supreme Council of Physical Culture of the USSR V.N. Mantsev; and representative of the Turkish Football Federation, Emni.[16] The encounter was viewed as a means of improving Soviet-Turkish relations and sharing cultural ties.[16] As part of this, the Soviet team placed a wreath at Taksimr's Republic Monument, which signified the independence of the Turkish state in 1923.[17] Aside from performing in front of a large, vocal crowd, the Soviet Union also had to make do without captain Alexander Starostin, who had fallen ill beforehand.[16][17]

Thus, kick-off saw the visitors initially struggle, with Turkey controlling proceedings thanks to their vast experience playing on a hard and uneven pitch in a hot climate.[17][16] But after 17 minutes, the Soviets suddenly went ahead thanks to a Vasily Smirnov goal.[17][4] 12 minutes later, Turkey conceded a penalty, which Smirnov converted for 2-0.[17][4] Turkey pulled one back when they were awarded a penalty at the 35th-minute mark, Rasikh scoring a goal that Spartak believed goalkeeper Ivan Ryzhov should have saved.[17][4] Finding themselves chasing the game in the second half, Turkey were on the offence at the start.[17] But ultimately, the Soviet Union began to turn the tide, which meant the second half mainly saw them attacking the Turkish goal to seal victory.[17] The first game ended 2-1 for the Soviet Union, whose representatives received thunderous applause from the Turkish crowd upon the final whistle.[16][17][4][2]

15th October

The 15th October clash commenced at the Taksim Stadium.[18][5][2] Sources conflict on attendance, with estimates ranging between 12,000 to 20,000.[5][2] The Soviet team were still without Starostin so they were instead captained by Konstantin Fomin.[5] This time, the visitors experienced a strong start when Vladimir Kuskov opened the scoreline after only five minutes.[18][5] But 14 minutes later, Turkey equalised courtesy of a Niyazi strike.[18][5] In the second half, Turkey took the lead for the first time via a Firket strike in the 51st minute.[18][5] The hosts appeared to be on top, narrowly missing some opportunities to double their lead.[18] But in the 81st minute, substitute Smirnov levelled proceedings.[18][5]

Suddenly, the Soviet Union were the ones likely to break the deadlock, and it appeared they had found a late winner thanks to Sergey Ilyin.[19][18] However, it was controversially ruled offside by Soviet referee Alexander Shchelchkov.[19] This prompted a major argument between himself and the Turkish linesmen who believed the goal was valid, causing the latter to storm off the pitch in protest.[19] Notably, Turkey and the Soviet Union agreed to switch officiating duties for each match.[19] Thus, an attempt by Mantsev to replace the linesmen with Soviet counterparts was rebuked, presumably to avoid accusations of bias.[19] Instead, other Turkish linesmen were fielded, with the game eventually finishing 2-2.[19][18][5][2]

19th October

Now in the city of Ankara, the teams played at the Ankaragucu Stadium on 19th October, with 30,000 spectators reportedly in attendance.[20][21][6][2] As with the Istanbul matches, this game was eagerly anticipated; those who could not enter the ground instead sat on the balconies and roofs of houses overlooking it.[20] Spartak reported that the pitch was again below standard, expressing concern that "every fall threatens mutilation".[21] The Soviets regained captain Starostin, but were disadvantaged in the first half as they played against the direction of the wind and sun.[21][6] Turkey henceforth went on the offensive, testing the might of the visitors' defence and goalkeeper Georgy Shorets.[20][21] But play eventually went in favour of the Soviets, culminating in an Ilyin pass reaching Viktor Shilovsky whose header made it 1-0 after 20 minutes.[21][20][6] But seven minutes afterwards, Fomin conceded a penalty.[21][20] Eten Hakkı's penalty was saved by Shorets, but it was all for nought when Fomin conceded a second penalty just 30 seconds later.[21][20][6] Yozaltay Vahap's initial penalty was stopped by Shorets, but he scored on the rebound.[21][20][6]

In the 30th minute, Kuskov was knocked out during a play.[20][6] He was replaced by Alexey Lapshin, who helped the visitors recover with some hopeful attacks.[20][6] Eleven minutes later, Ilyin exploited a lapse in the Turkish defence to break the deadlock.[20][21][6] Lapshin then capitalised on a rebound to make it 3-1 after 44 minutes.[20][6] But just before halftime, Çizer Muzaffer pulled one back for Turkey.[20][6][21] With just a goal separating the sides, the second half proved a contentious and controversial affair.[21][20] While the Soviet Union had some goal-scoring opportunities, they were allegedly thwarted by exceptionally "rude" Turkish attacks and referee Suphi Batur Mehmet being too keen to blow the whistle.[21][20] One foul, which saw a Soviet player hit in the legs, saw a Turkish right back be sent off.[21] More controversy arose with five minutes remaining, as Mehmet awarded a disputed penalty.[21][20] Despite Soviet protests lasting for about five minutes, the penalty was eventually converted by Vahap for 3-3, which remained as the final score.[21][20][6][2] Outraged Soviet publications, including Spartak, called for an investigation concerning Mehmet's refereeing.[21]

21st October

The subsequent Ankaragucu Stadium occurred with only 10,000 supposedly at the ground.[22][7][2] The Soviet Union reportedly were the stronger team at the beginning, but it was actually the hosts who took the lead when Wahab exploited a lapse in defence after 20 minutes.[22][7] Ilyin's straight-down-the-middle shot provided an equaliser ten minutes later.[22][7] In the second half, the Soviet Union were again on the offensive.[22] After 52 minutes, Ilyin received a crucial pass from Lapshin, which he converted for his second goal.[22][7] Most spectators failed to witness this thanks to a sudden dust cloud invading the ground.[22] Turkey battled back, with Arycan Fikret's header making it 2-2 after 67 minutes.[22][7] But in the 78th minute, substitute Vasily Pavlov's centre pass to Smirnov allowed the latter to score the winning goal.[22][7][2] But perhaps the biggest victory was that both Soviet and Turkish media alike were praising one another during the nations' various sporting events.[22] It was also reported that the governor and mayor of Ankara hosted a reception to highlight the Soviet representatives before they travelled to Izmir.[22]

25th October

The final matches of the series occurred at the Alsancak Stadium, with the 25th October clash attracting 10,000 fans.[8][2] Spartak was quick to praise this ground as the "best in Turkey".[23] Ilyin opened the scoreline after just six minutes of play, which was followed up by other strong Soviet chances that narrowly missed the target.[24][23][8] [23] These failures allowed Turkey to battle back, eventually securing an equaliser 38 minutes in via a Wahab shot.[23][24][8] But despite some hopeful second-half chances by the hosts, the Soviets proved the stronger side thanks to intercepts by Starostin and Viktor Teterin.[23][24] Turkish goalkeeper Erdem Necdet managed to stop seven shots on target, but ultimately could not prevent Shilovsky from re-taking the lead after 76 minutes, thanks to an Ilyin pass.[24][23][8] The final score was 2-1 in the visitors' favour.[23][24][8][2] Despite this, Spartak believed the team should have scored considerably more.[23] It praised the performances of Boris Ivin and Alexander Ryomin, but deemed Mikhail Yakushin and Shilovsky as the nation's weaklinks for that game.[23]

27th October

Finally, the 27th October game commenced with 8,000 in attendance.[25][9][2] This game proved the most controversial of all, with both teams unhappy with Shchelchkov's calls during play.[26][25] After 17 minutes, Adil gave Turkey the lead; protests that he was offside during the attack were dismissed by Shchelchkov.[25][9] The visitors suffered another blow when Starostin came off due to a bruised leg, being replaced by Lev Korchebokov after only 20 minutes.[25][9] 15 minutes later, Pyotr Dementyev successfully broke through the Turkish defence to level proceedings.[25][9] In the second half, Necdet kept his side in the game by stopping several Soviet chances.[25] Adil then capitalised on a defensive error to put Turkey 2-1 ahead after 64 minutes.[25][9]

It appeared the Soviet Union would swiftly equalise, but their goal was then disallowed by Shchelchkov.[25] Seven minutes later, goalkeeper Shorets made a crucial mistake, allowing Hamdi to score against an open Soviet goal for 3-1.[25][9][26] Turkey then went defensive, which brought the Soviets back into the game.[25] In the 82nd minute, Pavlov pulled one back despite protests he did so in an offside position.[26][25][9] Turkey's immediate retaliation was declared offside by Shchelchkov.[26] The drama then truly began in the 87th minute, when Shchelchkov awarded a Soviet penalty for seemingly no relevant reason.[26] An outraged Turkish team and the Turkish Sports Federation invaded the pitch to protest, all to no avail after 15 minutes.[26] Stanislav Leuta scored the penalty to make it 3-3.[26][25][9] Turkey then launched further attacks, but despite a Soviet defender handling the ball in the box, no penalty was awarded.[26] But moments later, Turkey appeared to have scored the winning goal; however, Shchelchkov refused to count it and blew the whistle for full time.[26][25]

The final score was subsequently disputed.[26][25][9][2] Most Turkish newspapers celebrated the result as a 4-3 Turkey victory.[26] It prompted the country's General Secretary to send a telegram congratulating the team for a seemingly unlikely win.[26] However, Soviet records claimed the match ended in a 3-3 draw.[25][26] Because Shchelchkov ended the match without declaring the fourth Turkish goal, most sources deem the result was indeed a draw.[9][2][26] As a result, the Soviet Union achieved an unbeaten campaign, with three wins and draws.[25][2][3] It also meant some Turkish officials and players accused Shchelchkov of having "stabbed" the home side by robbing a legitimate victory from them.[26] Nevertheless, Mantsev praised his nation for withstanding the best Turkish players but also believed Turkey would soon be capable of winning against the top teams in the world.[25] Following this, the teams returned to Ankara for a celebratory banquet to mark the 12th year of the Turkish Republic, before they along with other Soviet athletes returned to Moscow.[25]

Availability

It is confirmed that Sinyavsky provided live radio commentary on these six matches.[13][12][11] The broadcasts had the possibility of being preserved, especially as recordings became more practical and cost-effective in the mid-1930s.[27] But regardless of whether the broadcasts were recorded in the first place, they almost certainly no longer exist today.[28][13][12] In 1970, most recordings of his were destroyed as they were deemed to lack historical value.[12][13] His oldest surviving sports commentary is a partial recording of the 1945 game between Dynamo Moscow and Chelsea.[28][13] Nevertheless, DynamoFan75 was able to find photos of the 13th, 15th, 25th and 27th October matches and subsequently uploaded them to the Football of USSR forum.[4][5][8][9]

See Also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 ForPost - Sports in Crimea and Sevastopol summarising the Soviet Union's first ever match, against Turkey on 16th November 1924 (article in Russian). Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  2. ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 2.17 2.18 2.19 2.20 2.21 Gottfried Fuchs summarising the Soviet Union-Turkey matches held between 1924 to 1935. Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 Football and History's Dzen post summarising the Soviet Union's 1935 tour of Turkey (article in Russian). Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.8 Football in USSR providing a match report for the 13th October encounter (article in Russian). Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  5. ↑ 5.00 5.01 5.02 5.03 5.04 5.05 5.06 5.07 5.08 5.09 5.10 Football in USSR providing a match report for the 15th October encounter (article in Russian). Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  6. ↑ 6.00 6.01 6.02 6.03 6.04 6.05 6.06 6.07 6.08 6.09 6.10 6.11 6.12 Football in USSR providing a match report for the 19th October encounter (article in Russian). Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 7.7 Football in USSR providing a match report for the 21st October encounter (article in Russian). Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 8.7 Football in USSR providing a match report for the 25th October encounter (article in Russian). Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  9. ↑ 9.00 9.01 9.02 9.03 9.04 9.05 9.06 9.07 9.08 9.09 9.10 9.11 9.12 Football in USSR providing a match report for the 27th October encounter (article in Russian). Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Rambler reporting on the first Soviet radio commentary of a football match (article in Russian). Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 11.4 11.5 Football Nostalgia USSR's VK post listing the first radio and television milestones in Soviet football (post in Russian). Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4 12.5 12.6 12.7 12.8 Literature of Day detailing the career of Vadim Sinyavsky (article in Russian). Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 13.4 13.5 13.6 13.7 13.8 Sport-Archive detailing Sinyavsky's career, his most famous broadcasts and how most of his work has since been destroyed (article in Russian). Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  14. ↑ Gazeta documenting the first match to be televised live in the Soviet Union (article in Russian). Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  15. ↑ Mediatisation and Hyper-commodification of Sport in Post-1980 Turkey noting the 12th November 1961 match was the first to be televised live in Turkey. Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 16.3 16.4 16.5 16.6 15th October 1935 issue of Red Sport providing a match report for the 13th October encounter (newspaper in Russian, found on Football in USSR). Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 17.3 17.4 17.5 17.6 17.7 17.8 24th November 1935 issue of Spartak (Leningrad) providing a match report for the 13th October encounter (newspaper in Russian, found on Football in USSR). Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 18.3 18.4 18.5 18.6 18.7 17th October 1935 issue of Red Sport providing a match report for the 15th October encounter (newspaper in Russian, found on Football in USSR). Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 19.3 19.4 19.5 15th October 2001 issue of Sport-Express providing a recollection of the 15th October encounter (newspaper in Russian, found on Football in USSR). Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  20. ↑ 20.00 20.01 20.02 20.03 20.04 20.05 20.06 20.07 20.08 20.09 20.10 20.11 20.12 20.13 20.14 20.15 21st October 1935 issue of Red Sport providing a match report for the 19th October encounter (newspaper in Russian, found on Football in USSR). Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  21. ↑ 21.00 21.01 21.02 21.03 21.04 21.05 21.06 21.07 21.08 21.09 21.10 21.11 21.12 21.13 21.14 21.15 20th November 1935 issue of Spartak (Leningrad) providing a match report for the 19th October encounter (newspaper in Russian, found on Football in USSR). Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 22.2 22.3 22.4 22.5 22.6 22.7 22.8 22.9 23rd October 1935 issue of Red Sport providing a match report for the 21st October encounter (newspaper in Russian, found on Football in USSR). Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 23.2 23.3 23.4 23.5 23.6 23.7 23.8 30th November 1935 issue of Spartak (Leningrad) providing a match report for the 25th October encounter (newspaper in Russian, found on Football in USSR). Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  24. ↑ 24.0 24.1 24.2 24.3 24.4 27th October 1935 issue of Red Sport providing a match report for the 25th October encounter (newspaper in Russian, found on Football in USSR). Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  25. ↑ 25.00 25.01 25.02 25.03 25.04 25.05 25.06 25.07 25.08 25.09 25.10 25.11 25.12 25.13 25.14 25.15 25.16 25.17 29th October 1935 issue of Red Sport providing a match report for the 27th October encounter (newspaper in Russian, found on Football in USSR). Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  26. ↑ 26.00 26.01 26.02 26.03 26.04 26.05 26.06 26.07 26.08 26.09 26.10 26.11 26.12 26.13 26.14 15th October 2001 issue of Sport-Express providing a recollection of the 17th October encounter (newspaper in Russian, found on Football in USSR). Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  27. ↑ Library of Congress detailing how radio recordings became more common in the mid-1930s as practicality and cost-effectiveness improved. Retrieved 29th Nov '23
  28. ↑ 28.0 28.1 Radio Mohovaya 9 noting most of Sinyavsky's sports commentaries no longer exist (article in Russian). Retrieved 29th Nov '23
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