Juventus calls soldier salute by Merih Demiral "not a violation"

Italian Serie A team Juventus said Thursday that a soldier salute by Turkish defender Merih Demiral did not violate the club's ethical codes.

Demiral celebrated his team's goals with military-style salutes while playing with the Turkish national team in EURO 2020 qualifier matches against France and Andorra.

However, UEFA -- the European football's governing body -- had announced that it opened an investigation earlier this month on the move following a request from France.

Juventus's vice president Pavel Nedved confirmed he spoke with Demiral about his goal celebration.

"I talked to Demiral. Everyone has their freedom of expression, from the club's point of view. We wanted to understand the thoughts of the boy during the match with his national team,'' he said.

"His gesture, even if it was strong, from our point of view, does not integrate any violation of the code of ethics," Nedved added.