Galatasaray and Stuttgart went head-to-head in the Champions League with a former Tottenham defender in the middle of a huge altercation

Former Tottenham Hotspur defender Davinson Sanchez was involved in a heated exchange between Galatasaray and Stuttgart players in the Champions League. Tuesday night saw both clubs go head-to-head in the league phase fixture in Istanbul, with Galatasaray emerging victorious.

The Turkish club claimed a 2-0 victory thanks to a first-half brace from Aleksey Batrakov, but there was drama before the half-time whistle was blown.

Barıs Yılmaz of Galatasaray and Chris Fuhrich of Stuttgart battled for possession near the touchline as the ball went out of play for a throw-in.

Yilmaz then appeared to knock Fuhrich to the ground, which led to a mass confrontation between players and staff from both teams.

Former Brighton forward Denis Undav was part of the Stuttgart team that featured in Istanbul, and ran to confront Yilmaz after the incident to support his teammate.

This led to a mass brawl involving players and staff from both Galatasaray and Stuttgart, including former Tottenham star Sanchez.

The defender, who left Spurs in the summer of 2023 to join Galatasaray, ran to support his teammates and ended up in the middle of the altercation before tensions eventually eased.

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Premier League referee Chris Kavanagh was in charge of the game and went on to issue yellow cards to both Yilmaz and Undav once the situation had calmed down.

TNT Sport were broadcasting the match in the UK, with commentator Dan O'Hagan describing the “chaos” that unfolded at Rams Park.

"That's going to carry on here, that little pushing and shoving match. Now it all boils over,” O'Hagan said.

"Fuhrich and Baris Yilmaz, the first two players. Then they all got involved in it. What's been seen by the officials here, both on the field and the off-field monitors?

"Major first-half flashpoint. What's going to happen here then from the referee? Undav gets involved, that all kicks off.

"Teammates try to have their say and get involved as well. Chaos at this stage. Undav pusing, smiling. They all pile in."