Fenerbahce coach José Mourinho has refused to confirm whether he will remain next season after Sunday’s 1-0 loss at home to Besiktas left Fener second in the standings and eight points adrift of Super Lig leaders Galatasaray with four games remaining.
Mourinho joined Fenerbahce on a two-year contract last summer with the aim of leading the club to a first league title in a decade.
“I’m not speaking about next season,” Mourinho said postmatch. “These are things to speak internally and not with the media. If there is something where I’ve been absolutely perfect is on my respect towards my [club] president, my board, not to bring to the public domain internal things.”
Mourinho also refused to comment on Galatasaray, who are on course to win their third straight league title.
The former Chelsea manager has spoken throughout the season about the “toxic” environment in the Super Lig, claiming that Fenerbahce’s top rivals receive special treatment from referees.
“I don’t speak about them,” he said when asked about Galatasaray on Sunday. “I speak about the championship and I’ve done it during the season.”
Mourinho had said in the past he was alarmed by what he called “a system” in the domestic league that is deeply ingrained.
“I don’t change one single word about what I’ve said during the season,” he added on Sunday. “One of the problems that Fenerbahce has is exactly the difficulty to cope mentally with the power of the system. It is something that is stronger than the quality…it is something really powerful. Players do feel it and they know it’s completely impossible to reach what they want to reach.”
Mourinho, meanwhile, was asked what advice he would give to former Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjær, who took charge of Besiktas in January.
“Ole has already been here for a few months,” he said. “He is experienced enough and intelligent enough to learn what he has to learn. I’m nobody to give him any kind of advice. We are experienced enough for him not to be on the moon because he won a derby and for me not to be in hell because I’ve lost a derby. We respect each other well. I think we like each other, too.”
Mourinho, however, accepted criticism from Fenerbahce fans after yet another derby defeat in the domestic league. Fenerbahce have failed to beat their two big city rivals, Galatasaray and Besitkas, this season.
“It’s normal in this culture when results are not the results that people expect for there to be reactions,” Mourinho said. “I will never be critical of that. I’m open to critics, it’s part of my life.”