Mourinho was banned for four matches by the Turkish Football Federation.
Jose Mourinho, manager of Fenerbahce, has been suspended for four matches and fined £35,000 following the fallout from Monday’s goalless draw against Galatasaray, who accused the Portuguese coach of uttering racial slurs.
In his post-match comments, Mourinho stated that the Galatasaray bench was “jumping like monkeys” following an early challenge, and that the game was better off being officiated by Slovenian Slavko Vincic rather than Turkish authorities after both teams requested a foreign appointment.
Galatasaray later stated that they intend to “initiate criminal proceedings concerning the racist statements made by Jose Mourinho” and that he had made “derogatory statements directed towards the Turkish people”.
On Thursday, the Turkish Football Federation announced decisions made by its Professional Football Disciplinary Board, which sanctioned the Fenerbahce manager for two distinct disciplinary issues.
According to the TFF, Mourinho entered the referees’ room and made “derogatory and offensive statements” at the fourth official, who was Turkish.
The Portuguese manager further “accused Turkish football of chaos and disorder with insulting and offensive statements towards both the Turkish football community and all Turkish referees” .
The TFF stated that Mourinho’s “actions and statements that insulted the brand value of football activities in Turkey” were taken into account, resulting in a two-match ban from both the dressing room and the touchline, as well as a fine of 117,000 Turkish lira (£2,500).
Regarding his press conference remarks following the match, the TFF said: “It was determined that the statements used towards the members of the opposing team, were not mandatory, were contrary to the ethics of sports and the concept of fair play, contained expressions that could encourage violence and disorder in sports, were divisive and separatist in society and could cause fan incidents, and therefore, it was deemed an act against sportsmanship.”
As a result, a 1.5 million TL (£32,655) punishment was levied, coupled with a two-match ban.
Mourinho will miss Fenerbahce’s future league games against Antalyaspor, Samsunspor, Bodrum, and Trabzonspor as a result of his sanctions. He will, however, be available to take his place on the touchline for the Europa League last 16 fixtures against Rangers, with the first leg in Istanbul on Thursday, March 6, and the return leg in Glasgow on March 13.
Galatasaray, who lead Fenerbahce by six points at the top of the Super Lig, will add a fifth star to their already impressive crest if they win their 25th league title this season.
Following the racism claims, former Chelsea striker Didier Drogba defended his old employer and ‘dad’ Mourinho.
Former Ivory Coast international Drogba, who played for Galatasaray in 2013-14 between two spells at Stamford Bridge, both under Mourinho, used a social media post to defend the 62-year-old, claiming the Portuguese coach was a father figure to him throughout his career.
Fener issued their own statement on Tuesday, claiming that Mourinho’s post-match comments were “taken completely out of context and deliberately distorted” and could “in no way be associated with racism.”
Leave a Comment