Mourinho is fined 25 euros
Jose Mourinho's outrageous outburst against VAR official Atilla Karaoglan after Fenerbahçe's win over Trabzonspor has landed him in serious trouble.
In a match full of controversy, Fenerbahçe managed to secure victory with Sofyan Amrabat's last-minute goal in the 12th minute. Despite the triumph, Mourinho was far from satisfied, arguing that the VAR referee played an outsized role in favoring Trabzonspor, particularly through two controversial penalties awarded to the home side.
"Today, the man of the match was the VAR referee Atilla Karaoglan. We didn't see him, but he was the referee of the match," Mourinho said. Speaking on behalf of the entire club, he continued: "We don't want him anymore. We don't want it because it smells bad. We don't want it. We don't want him on the pitch, but even less in VAR."
Mourinho's criticism went beyond individual decisions, accusing the entire refereeing system of bias and pointing out the challenges of playing in such circumstances. He said: “We play against a system. And playing against a system is the hardest thing."
Mourinho's off-the-cuff comments did not go unnoticed, prompting the Turkish Football Federation (TFF) to respond with a significant fine and additional sanctions. On Thursday, the federation issued a statement calling Mourinho's remarks unsportsmanlike, arguing that his comments were damaging to the integrity of Turkish football.
In the statement of the TFF it was said: "In the flash interview and the press conference after the match; the statements in question are contrary to sports morals, sports ethics or the concept of fair play, damage the reputation of the federation, aim to lower the value of Turkish football, cast shadows on the impartiality of referees and other match officials and therefore Mourinho is punished with a discretionary fine of 25 euros in accordance with article 38/4 of the FDT due to unsportsmanlike statements", says the announcement.
The rebuke does not end there. Mourinho also received an additional fine of around €1,300 and has been banned for one match.
