Fenerbahce’s manager Jose Mourinho was a ban on four games and sentenced to a fine by the Turkish Football Federation (TFF) following his comments on Turkish referees after a match in Istanbul Rivals Galatasaray.
The TFF inflicted a fine of the 62-year-old Portuguese 1,617,000 Turkish ($ 44,000) after criticizing the match officials at a press conference after the 0-0 Super Lig draw on Monday.
The sanctions were due to “derogatory and offensive statements to the Turkish referee” and accusations of chaos and troubles in Turkish football, said the TFF.
The TFF said Mourinho’s remarks violated the ethics of sport, promoted violence and disorder and could encourage fans’ incidents.
Monday’s match was refereed by Slavko Vincic Slovenian after the two clubs asked for a foreign official.
After the match, Mourinho wanted to rent the referee, stressing the fact that he was not from Türkiye.
“The referee’s performance was a higher performance,” said Mourinho.
“Anyone, not just in this country but also abroad, has watched a big football match. I think the man responsible for this was the referee.
Mourinho was also asked about an incident at the start of the game involving his 19 -year -old defender Yusuf Akcicek, to whom he said: “Once again, I must thank the referee because with a Turkish referee after the big dive and the first minute and their bench jumping like children.
“A Turkish referee would have (given Akcicek) a yellow card after a minute, and after five minutes, I should change it.”
Galatasaray said they “initiate criminal procedures” and report Mourinho to FIFA and UEFA for what they called “racist statements”.
Fenerbahce published a declaration defending Mourinho on Tuesday, saying that his comments had been released from their context and deliberately distorted. The club said that he was planning to take legal action “against this baseless accusation”.
The former manager of Chelsea, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur Mourinho has already been sentenced to a fine and suspended for his comments on the officials of the Turkish match.
Reuters’ information contributed to this report.
