Drogheda United vs Trabzonspor: The Friendly That Salah Almost Stole

This is one of those football stories that reminds you why the game is brilliant. A League of Ireland club with 5,000 fans on a Saturday afternoon taking on a Turkish giant who just signed Mohamed Salah in front of 40,000 roaring supporters. It shouldn't make sense. Yet here we are.

Drogheda United are travelling to the Black Sea coast to face Trabzonspor in a friendly, and the whole thing is rooted in one of the warmest club relationships in world football.

How a Turkish Forum Changed Everything

The story starts in 2006. A couple of Trabzonspor fans on an online forum noticed that a small Irish club called Drogheda United shared their colours, claret and blue, and had a star and crescent on their crest, matching the symbols on the Turkish flag. Messages started flying back and forth.

That online discovery eventually became something real. When Drogheda entered examinership in 2008, the Turkish equivalent of administration, Trabzonspor fans heard about it and did something remarkable. They sent letters to the club with cash inside. Actual cash, posted to a struggling Irish football club they'd never met.

By 2010 the two clubs were officially sister clubs, and the bond has only grown stronger since. Around 30% of Drogheda's social media following is Turkish, which is extraordinary when you think about it. More of their online audience comes from Turkey than from Ireland.

The relationship also sits within a wider historical context. The Ottoman Empire sent humanitarian aid to Ireland during the Great Famine in the 1800s, and 2025 marks 75 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries. Thursday's friendly isn't just a football match. It carries real meaning on both sides.

The Salah Factor

Let's be honest. A big part of why this friendly exploded on social media is the possibility of seeing Mohamed Salah in the opposition dugout, or better yet, on the pitch.

When Trabzonspor unveiled Salah in August, it was one of the transfers of the summer window globally. A packed Papara Park, 40,000 fans, a genuine superstar arriving on the Black Sea coast. It was a statement signing that sent shockwaves through Turkish football and beyond.

The uncertainty around whether Salah actually plays is very real. He was left out of Egypt's recent Africa Cup of Nations qualifier due to the artificial turf, which tells you his camp is being careful about unnecessary risk. A friendly against a League of Ireland side, no matter how much goodwill surrounds it, probably falls into the same category of caution.

Drogheda's CEO put it perfectly though. Even having Salah in the stadium would be something. And we'd agree. The moment he walks out, however many Boynesiders made the 4,700km trip are going to have a story for the rest of their lives.

The Betting Angle on This One

Friendlies are tricky from a football betting perspective, but there are still angles worth considering here.

Trabzonspor are operating at an entirely different level in terms of squad depth, fitness and competitive readiness. They're a top-flight Turkish side mid-season with Salah in the squad and serious investment behind them this summer. Drogheda, for all the romance, are a League of Ireland outfit who drew 0-0 in Galway the same weekend Trabzonspor were unveiling their marquee signing.

If this match ends up on the markets, backing Trabzonspor to win comfortably or a high-scoring game with the Turkish side on top is the sensible lean. The hosts will likely use this as a training run and may field a mix of squad players, but even their depth outclasses a part-time Irish side.

For accumulator builders, mixing this kind of friendly result with other weekend fixtures can offer decent odds without enormous risk, especially if Trabzonspor's motivation is to put on a show for the fans who have supported their Irish friends for almost two decades.

Watch the team sheets closely before kick-off. If Salah is named in the squad, expect Trabzonspor to be serious about making a statement, and the goals market becomes very interesting.

Our Take

This is a feel-good story that deserves every bit of attention it's getting. The 2013 friendly was washed out before it could happen, Turkish fans have literally posted cash to an Irish club in their hour of need, and now 30-odd Drogheda supporters are flying to Turkey to watch their side take on a club with one of the world's best players on the books.

Football at its best doesn't need a Champions League anthem to mean something. Sometimes it just needs a forum post from 2006 and a few letters stuffed with cash.

Salah or no Salah, this one already won.