Mohamed Salah hat-trick sparks celebrations from Erdogan’s daughter at Trabzonspor

Mohamed Salah’s hat-trick for Trabzonspor against Galatasaray prompted enthusiastic celebrations from Esra Albayrak, the daughter of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and her husband Berat Albayrak.

Salah scored three times and set up teammate Saviolo as Trabzonspor secured a 4-0 victory over the leaders on Saturday. The result moved Trabzonspor to within three points of Galatasaray, with the club sitting fifth in the table.

Images from the match showed former Turkish Treasury and Finance Minister Albayrak celebrating Salah’s goals from the stands alongside his wife. Esra Albayrak was also seen joining supporters in chants for the Egypt forward.

According to business and economics website Patronlar Dunyası, the appearance marked Albayrak’s return to the public spotlight after several months away from media attention and public events.

“Albayrak, 47, travelled to Trabzon on the Black Sea coast with his wife Esra Erdogan and their children to watch the match, which ended with Trabzonspor beating leaders Galatasaray 4-0,” the report said.

It added: “From the stands, Albayrak watched the goals scored by the Egypt star, who completed a hat-trick and provided an assist for his team-mate Saviolo. His wife Esra also joined the supporters in chanting for Mohamed Salah.”

Albayrak’s connection with Trabzonspor is not new. The club’s president, Ertugrul Dogan, said several days before the match that the president’s son-in-law had supported the club with some projects and operations.

The result lifted Trabzonspor’s points tally to 10, while Galatasaray remained top with 13 points.