Fenerbahce coach José Mourinho labelled himself as “the foreign one” on Saturday when addressing his need to adapt to Turkish football.
The Portuguese manager famously described himself as “a special one” during his first spell at Chelsea before opting to be known as “the experienced one” while at Tottenham.
Asked about Turkish football after his team’s 2-2 Super Lig draw at Goztepe, Mourinho said: “The passion, the love, the enthusiasm matches with my passion with football, totally. Then there are other things that are out of my control, [they] are cultural.
It looks like it’s for me to adapt and not vice versa. I am the one that arrived, I am the foreign one. I’m not going to change the state of things. I need to adapt… I am not a magician, I am experienced.”
At 61, José Mourinho took charge of Fenerbahce this summer, six months after being dismissed by Roma.
This marks his first venture outside Europe’s top five leagues since 2004 when he departed FC Porto, having just won the Champions League, to join Chelsea.
Mourinho’s illustrious career has seen him manage clubs like Inter Milan, Real Madrid, Manchester United, and Tottenham, where he collected numerous trophies and often stirred controversy off the pitch. Now, he’s focused on ending Fenerbahce’s decade-long Super Lig title drought.
However, his tenure began with a setback. After a midweek Champions League qualifying exit to Lille, Fenerbahce was held to a 2-2 draw against Goztepe, despite leading 2-0 at halftime.
“Too naive or too poetic, in a league that is not poetic,” Mourinho said of his team’s performance. “I always say when we are winning at half-time, ambition and kill the game…
The anti-football in some other countries they call it being clever, I think they [Fenerbahce players] have to be clever too.”