Mourinho Criticizes VAR Decision in Fenerbahçe’s 4-1 Win Over Trabzonspor

Mourinho explained that they switched from a back three to a four-man defense for multiple reasons.

Speaking at the press conference held at Ülker Stadium, the Portuguese coach said the changes in the squad were not surprising. He emphasized that they had analyzed their opponent well:

“They have a good coach—I really like him. We expected them to make runs behind the defense by stretching the field. That’s why we decided to play with a back four. They also didn’t use their usual system. I’m also trying to give chances to players who want to return to the team. Maximin is the best example of that. He worked hard to get back into form. He had shown signs of his return in the Galatasaray match. He wasn’t ready to play the full 90 minutes, but in 60–65 minutes, he showed how important he is to us. There wasn’t just one reason for the changes we made today. There were multiple factors for returning to a back four. They were defending with five, and players like Zubkov and Pedro Malheiro could have caused us problems. It was a good match. The first half was very balanced. I don’t want to repeat myself, but I really don’t understand why the VAR didn’t call the referee to review our very clear penalty. They did in the Bodrum and Galatasaray matches. It was a clear penalty that could’ve changed the course of the game. Right after that, they scored and we had to go into a tough second half.”

When asked about the incident involving Galatasaray manager Okan Buruk during the derby, Mourinho responded:

“I don’t want to comment on the title race because anything I say might be dangerous. I think a picture is worth a thousand words. If I tell you what happened, that would just be my version. The Galatasaray coach probably has his own version. Words don’t mean much; the footage speaks for itself. I’m sure even Hollywood has seen it.”

Mourinho concluded by discussing the injuries and fans’ reactions:

“I love Maximin. He’s a great kid. When he’s at his physical peak, he’s a player I admire a lot. But when his fitness dropped or when his mind was on going to Napoli and he stopped working, I had to do my job. We need his talent and creativity. I’m happy for him and for the team. He loves playing football—you can see the joy on his face. Hopefully, he keeps enjoying himself and continues to meet our needs until the end of the season.

I’m happy the fans are chanting Irfan Can’s name, but I’m sad that they don’t do it for every player. Fenerbahçe has 35 million coaches. But there’s only one person making the decisions. They could be right or wrong, but one person makes those calls. Chanting won’t change my decisions. Irfan, like Ismail, has had injury issues. He only joined the squad step by step yesterday. Fans don’t know these kinds of details, but one person does.”