17.08.2025 07:22
Fenerbahçe's head coach Jose Mourinho made statements following the match against Göztepe. The Portuguese coach made an interesting comment about the match, stating, "It was a fair result."
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In the 2nd week of the Super League, Fenerbahçe drew 0-0 away against Göztepe. Fenerbahçe's head coach Jose Mourinho made striking statements after the match.
"WE DIDN'T STRUGGLE TO BUILD UP PLAY" Evaluating the match, Mourinho said, "We didn't struggle to build up play from the back. What we couldn't do were the final passes in the 3rd zone. They were lined up in a block of 5+3. Their 3 center-backs were excellent in physical play and in the air. We didn't struggle to build up play."
"IT WAS A FAIR RESULT" Mourinho, who made striking remarks, stated that the score was fair, saying, "The opponent played very deep and made a physical defense. In that case, it doesn't matter if it's 10 or 11. When it's not 11 against 11, you struggle with pressing up front, but if you don't struggle in defense, you don't feel like you are 10 men. They did that very well. We had difficulties in the second zone. I have to give credit to the opponent. Every match played here is tough. Today's result was a fair result."
'THEY DEFENDED LIKE A WALL' Jose Mourinho stated that they played against a wall today, saying, "They defended like a wall. The players and their coach deserve credit."
'HOW CAN WE PRESS?' Mourinho, mentioning that Çağlar Söyüncü had a physical problem and was not in the squad because he couldn't recover from it since yesterday, also addressed the reason for not creating many chances, saying, "We need to give credit to the opponent. I understand this. It is hard to give credit to an opponent that does good things for you. There is a tendency to criticize the team that can't do more by saying 'they couldn't do this' or 'they couldn't do that', but we need to acknowledge the differences. Today we played against a wall. They defended like a wall. The players and their coach deserve credit. They were defending with 5 at the back. One of their defenders is 1.90, another is 1.91, and the other is 1.81 tall. The midfielders were playing with a lot of effort, biting for every ball and every duel. When that happens, it is always difficult to play against them. At the same time, there is a reality. When the ball is constantly in the air, you can't press the opponent. Maybe you experts can tell us how we can press in a game where the ball is constantly in the air? But our opponent plays that way. The Göztepe goalkeeper doesn't play short from the back and plays long balls. How can we press the opponent this way? After they play long balls, we inevitably have to fall back and get buried."
'THEY DESERVED THE POINT' Mourinho stated that he wouldn't want this style of play for his team in such matches, saying, "Every coach has their own ideas. I respect Göztepe, and their players have adapted to this game in the best way. I think they deserved the 1 point today. Yes, if we had taken that opportunity and scored, we would have won the match in the last minutes, but I think they deserved the 1 point with the defense they made. Every long ball they played was a danger for us. I am not happy with this result. We need to give credit to the opponent. I respect our opponent."
'THE DIFFICULT PART WAS GETTING PAST THE WALL' When asked if he had analyzed Göztepe well, Mourinho replied:
"Yes, I think I analyzed them very well. I have been analyzing them since last year. Because the way they play is exactly the same. They do the same things completely. Even when a player leaves, the player they bring in is exactly the same profile, with the same characteristics. Do you want me to explain what kind of playing style they have to see if I analyzed them well? Because after the match, I was told in a TV interview that I struggled to build up play from the back, but that wasn't the case. Building up play from the back was very easy for us. Because the opponent wasn't pressing. Therefore, building up play from the back was very easy for us, but what was difficult for us was getting past that wall afterwards."
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