Football manager, José Mourinho, is certainly not one to shy away from the cameras. It fact, at least to me, it's the opposite. He thrives on the the attention. He needs the attention. However, his latest attempt isn't harmless. He uttered a slur that has resulted in a club reporting his behaviour.
Turkish club, Galatasaray, have accused José Mourinho of making, "racist statements" and said they would initiate criminal proceedings against the Fenerbahce manager over his comments after their 0-0 Super Lig draw on Monday.
Although it was not clear which statements Galatasaray were referring to, Mourinho said the home side’s bench had been, "jumping like monkeys" and that the match would have been a disaster if a Turkish referee had been in charge. Monday's game was refereed by the Slovenian, Slavko Vincic, after both clubs requested a foreign official take charge.
Galatasaray said on X that Mourinho had, "persistently issued derogatory statements directed towards the Turkish people" since taking up his role in the league. "Today, his discourse has escalated beyond merely immoral comments into unequivocally inhumane rhetoric," the club said.
"We hereby formally declare our intention to initiate criminal proceedings concerning the racist statements made by José Mourinho, and shall accordingly submit official complaints to UEFA and FIFA."
Mourinho has previously been fined and suspended for his comments about Turkish match officials. The Portuguese was again critical of Turkish referees in a press conference after Monday's match.
"I went to the referees' dressing room after the game," he said. "Of course, the fourth official was there, a Turkish referee. I told him [Vincic]: 'Thank you to come here because you come for a big match and you are responsible for a big match.'
"And I turned myself to the fourth official and I [said]: ‘This match, if you are the referee, this match would be a disaster.' And when I say him, I say the general tendency."
Mourinho also praised Vincic for not giving a yellow card to the defender, Yusuf Akcicek, early in the match despite the animated reaction of the Galatasaray bench to a challenge.
"I have also to thank the referee because with a Turkish referee after the big dive in the first minute, their bench jumping like monkeys on the top of the kid, with a Turkish referee you would have a yellow card after one minute and after five minutes I would have to change him," he said.
Fenerbahce have defended their after allegations of racism were levelled against the ex-Real Madrid boss by Galatasaray. The Turkish football club said that Mourinho's comments and actions had been taken out of context. Fenerbahce stated that trying to portray the incident as racism was a, "completely malevolent approach."
The Turkish football club said that Mourinho's comments and actions had been taken out of context. Fenerbahce stated that trying to portray the incident as racism was a, "completely malevolent approach."
The club also said that it would exercise it's legal rights to counter the, "pathetic slander" against their side that aims to manipulate the agenda and take the competition out of the field.
The controversy has given a twist to Monday’s fixture between Galatasaray and Fenerbahce, which ended in a 0-0 draw.
After the game, Mourinho was critical of the referees and said that Galatasaray's bench had been, "jumping like monkeys" after an incident in the first half. The "Special One" also argued that it would be better to have foreign officials for each match. He said that using Turkish officials, "would have been a disaster."
The Portuguese manager said that the decision to use Slovenian referee Slavko Vincic in the game was a good one. Mourinho has frequently been critical of referees in the country and said that using foreign officials is important for maintaining the image and credibility of the game.
It’s been a tumultuous season for the "Special One," who, in November, was fined and suspended for one game after launching a tirade against Turkish soccer and its referees, as per the Associated Press.
I don't care wether Mourinho meant it or not or if it was taken out of context. I fully condone the actions that Galatasaray are following. Mourinho has to learn that he can't do whatever he wants and go scot free everytime. A simple fine or suspension will do nothing. There always comes a point where people have to pay for what they've done. This is the case even if the person is famous and popular.