Jose Mourinho was sent off as Manchester United secured a 1-1 draw against Fenerbahce in Istanbul. Christian Eriksen gave United the lead, but Youssef En-Nesyri equalized for the hosts just after halftime. Mourinho was dismissed for protesting a decision after Fenerbahce was denied a penalty. United remain winless in the Europa League.
Mourinho, now Fenerbahce’s coach and a former United manager, was shown a red card in the second half. The incident occurred after a challenge by Manuel Ugarte on Bright Osayi-Samuel in the box, which referee Clement Turpin waved off, leading to heated protests from Mourinho. After the game, Mourinho revealed that he was given an “incredible” explanation by the referee, saying, “I watched the [penalty] incident. I don’t want to speak about it. But he told me something incredible. He was watching the penalty situation and my behavior on the touchline simultaneously. That’s why he’s one of the best referees in the world.”
Match Report:
United faced a hostile crowd, with every touch of the ball jeered early on. Erik ten Hag’s side managed to quiet the atmosphere in the 15th minute when Manuel Ugarte’s tackle started a counterattack. Alejandro Garnacho raced down the wing, delivering a cross that found Noussair Mazraoui, who teed up Christian Eriksen to fire into the top corner.
United could have doubled their lead when Marcus Rashford missed a great chance, and Ugarte made a last-ditch block to deny Dusan Tadic. Andre Onana’s fantastic double save from Youssef En-Nesyri kept United ahead at halftime.
However, Fenerbahce equalized just four minutes into the second half. Allan Saint-Maximin delivered a perfect cross for En-Nesyri to head home from close range.
The game swung in Fenerbahce’s favor, and they felt they should have been awarded a penalty after Ugarte’s challenge on Osayi-Samuel. The referee’s refusal to grant it infuriated Mourinho, resulting in his sending-off. Despite the pressure, neither side found a winner. United suffered another blow when Antony was stretchered off late in the match.
United remain winless in the Europa League this season and have gone over a year without a European victory, sitting 21st in the table. Fenerbahce, on the other hand, are still unbeaten in Europe this season, now sitting 14th.
Mourinho’s Post-Match Comments:
“They got a point against us, not the other way around. We played an amazing game. If we perform like this in the Turkish league, we’ll destroy every team. The Premier League has more quality, more intensity, but my boys were incredible.
“In England, people will talk about a few United players that didn’t play, but we also had key players missing. We had to finish the match with a center-back at right-back and a right-back at left-back. It was like solving a crazy puzzle, but the performance was extraordinary.
The English media will say United didn’t play well, but we were the better team. It’s a good result for Manchester United, but we deserved more.
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