Members of the Turkish political hierarchy have criticized the reception the Turkey national football team received in Reykjavik ahead of Tuesday’s fixture between the two sides after a series of incidents marred their arrival.

The Turkish team was subjected to lengthy customs searches which delayed them for several hours upon arrival at Reykjavik airport on Sunday.

And, in a separate incident, a member of the Icelandic media was seen to hold a toilet brush in lieu of a microphone in a media scrum with veteran player Emre Belozoglu.

Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu wrote on Twitter that the treatment was “unacceptable in terms of diplomatic and humanitarian practice,” also adding that Turkey “will do what is necessary” in retaliation for their perceived mistreatment. 

Besiktas forward Burak Yilmaz is reported to have said that the team was subjected to intricate searches of their bags by customs agents, hampering their arrival at the team hotel and disrupting their training schedule.

Turkish media outlet NTV reports that Turkey has delivered a formal diplomatic protest to Iceland regarding the incidents. Icelandic authorities have yet to comment. 

Click Here: Sports Water Bottles

Ibrahim Kalin, spokesperson for Turkish President Erdogan, wrote on social media that the “disrespect to our national team in Iceland is unacceptable.”

“Our state and nation stands next to the national team, who will give the best answer on the field.”

President Erdogan is a noted football enthusiast who played semi-professionally before his entry into political office.

He recently caused controversy when he was pictured performing the role of best man at the wedding of Arsenal’s German midfielder Mesut Ozil, who is of Turkish heritage.

Turkey, who beat world champions France 2-0 on Saturday, will be looking to continue their perfect record as they lead Group H of the UEFA European Championship qualifiers.

Iceland, meanwhile, sit in third place behind France with two wins and one loss from their first three outings.