José Mourniho fired by Fenerbahçe after Turkish club's Champions League playoff exit

With José Mourniho, hiring usually ends badly. Eliminated by Benfica on Wednesday, August 27, in the Champions League play-offs, the Turkish club Fenerbahçe Istanbul announced this Friday that it was parting ways with the famous Portuguese coach.

"We are parting ways with José Mourinho, coach of our senior professional team since the 2024-2025 season," the Istanbul club announced in a statement, two days after the 1-0 defeat at Benfica. In the first leg – in Turkey – of these qualifiers for the most prestigious European Cup, the two teams had drawn 0-0.

The Portuguese, appointed Fenerbahçe coach in June 2024, failed last season to get the Istanbul "Canaries" back to the league title, which has eluded them since 2014.

Last April, the "Special One" was most notable for grabbing the face of the coach of rival Galatasaray after a Turkish Cup derby loss. Two months earlier, the Portuguese had already been suspended for four matches and fined for comments made after a league match against Galatasaray. He accused the fourth official of the match—and through him all Turkish referees—of favoring Galatasaray, the three-time reigning Turkish champion.

Throughout his career, Mourniho has accumulated experience at some of the biggest football clubs in the world. Having made his mark at FC Porto between 2002 and 2004, he has since played for Chelsea (2004-2007 and 2013-2015), Inter Milan (2008-2010), Real Madrid (2010-2013), Manchester United (2016-2018), Tottenham (2019-2021), and AS Roma (2021-2024).

Sometimes marked by great successes, notably in the Champions League, with Porto in 2004 and Inter Milan in 2010, Mourinho's career has also been marked by multiple incidents generally linked to the brutality of his communication.