Jose Mourinho, even as his stock has fallen, has always been a specialist cup manager. While his last few jobs have been less successful, he still took Tottenham to a League Cup final and Roma to a Conference League and Europa League final.
The Portuguese also has an impressive record in the Champions League. He won it, memorably, as a young coach at Porto, and then won it again with Inter in 2010. His Chelsea and Real Madrid teams often went deep into the competition, too.
But the football world has changed. Mourinho is no longer at the helm of clubs expecting to win the Champions League. Instead, he is at Fenerbahce, one of Turkey’s biggest clubs but, compared to the European elite, financially limited.
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Jose Mourinho crashed out of the Champions League with Fenerbahce earlier than ever
Still, Fenerbahce fans would not have expected to crash out of the Champions League in the third qualifying round. No Mourinho team has ever been eliminated before the group stage - until now.
His side fell to a 3-2 aggregate defeat to Ligue 1 outfit Lille in dramatic circumstances. After an own goal from Bafode Diakite in injury time took the tie to extra time, Lille were reduced to ten men when Aissa Mandi was sent off. But Jonathan David scored a penalty - controversially awarded for a handball in the box after a VAR check - two minutes from time to knock Fenerbahce out.
Mourinho was, unsurprisingly, not happy. "We would never win the Champions League. We would never reach the Champions League final. Never," he said.
JOSE MOURINHO took charge of his first Fenerbahce game yesterday.It took him just 20 minutes to be yellow carded for arguing with officials. 😬🟨 pic.twitter.com/pz6xOmibKkAugust 11, 2024
"But we go to Europa League and in Europa League if - if - I don't want to say the rest. I prefer to stay on the ifs. If we can do a great Europa League. If, if, if. But we can do a great Europa League with if. I can't speak more than the if. If not, I am in trouble.
"If you want to know more about the ifs, I invite you watch Roma-Sevilla in the Europa League final 2022/23 and you understand the ifs."
Fenerbahce will indeed be among the teams expected to do well in the Europa League, but a premature Champions League exit will sting for Mourinho. Another title in Europe’s second most prestigious competition, though, might be adequate compensation for the Special One.
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