08.03.2025 13:40
Fenerbahçe faced a setback in the first leg of the UEFA Europa League Round of 16, losing 3-1 at home to the Scottish team Rangers. This result has made advancing to the next round more difficult. Ahead of the return match scheduled for Thursday, March 13, memories of similar situations in Jose Mourinho's career come to mind, where he has managed to advance his team after losing the first leg in six different matchups.
The Super Lig giant Fenerbahçe lost 3-1 at home to the Scottish team Rangers in the first match of the UEFA Europa League Round of 16, bringing to mind the matches where Jose Mourinho advanced in similar situations during his career before the return leg.
ADVANCED TO THE NEXT ROUND 6 TIMES
The 62-year-old coach has managed to advance to the next round in 6 matchups where he lost the first leg in two-legged knockout rounds after the group stages in his career.
In the 2002-2003 season, when he won his first European trophy with Porto, Mourinho's team faced the Greek team Panathinaikos in the quarter-finals of what was then called the UEFA Cup, losing the first match 1-0. A week later, Porto emerged victorious with a 2-0 win in the match in Athens, securing their place in the semi-finals. The blue and whites went on to lift the trophy that season. A season later, Mourinho won the UEFA Champions League with Porto and then signed with the English team Chelsea. In his first season, the Portuguese coach reached the semi-finals of the Champions League and made a comeback in the Round of 16 against Barcelona in the same season. The London team lost the first match 2-1 at Nou Camp but advanced by winning the return leg 4-2.
Jose Mourinho, in his second term at Chelsea, competed in the semi-finals of the Champions League again in the 2013-2014 season. In the previous round, Chelsea faced the French team PSG in the quarter-finals, losing the first match 3-1, putting their advancement in jeopardy. In the return leg played at Stamford Bridge, the English representative won 2-0 and advanced to the next round. In the 2014-2015 season, Chelsea faced PSG again in the Round of 16 but could not win either match, exiting the Champions League on away goals. Mourinho completed that season with victories in the Premier League and the League Cup.
In the 2021-2022 season, Jose Mourinho returned to Italy and played in 2 finals in Europe with Roma over 2 seasons. Roma, which finished first in its group in the UEFA Europa Conference League implemented that season by UEFA, lost 2-1 to Bodo/Glimt in the first match of the quarter-finals. In the return leg, the Italian team, not giving their opponent a chance, secured a place in the semi-finals with a 4-goal victory.
The following season, Mourinho's Roma participated in the Europa League. In the first match of the Round of 16 play-off, Roma lost 1-0 to the Austrian team Salzburg but advanced with a score of 2-0 in the second match. Roma, which faced Feyenoord, whom they defeated in the Conference League final the previous season, met again in the quarter-finals of the Europa League, and after losing the first match 1-0, they won the return leg 4-1 to advance to the semi-finals.