Fenerbahçe presidential candidate vows to bring Mourinho

Duvar English

Turkish sports giant Fenerbahçe’s presidential candidate Aziz Yıldırım, who is also a former Fenerbahçe president, on May 13 vowed to bring Jose Mourinho as the football club’s manager should he assume the seat.

Speaking to state-run TRT Spor, Yıldırım said he will announce his official candidacy on May 15 in a press release.  

“Fenerbahçe cannot afford to say 'he is our child' and continue with those names (as the managers). Fenerbahçe must compete with big teams with big coaches,” Yıldırım said, criticizing current manager İsmail Kartal.

Kartal is an ex-Fenerbahçe football player. He has been in charge since 2023 summer. He was also the manager of Fenerbahçe in the 2014-15 and 2021-22 seasons, finishing second in both seasons. 

Fenerbahçe’s football team has currently 93 points, six points behind Galatasaray in the league race with two matches remaining. Both teams will play on May 19 at Galatasaray's home. 

Yıldırım then vowed to bring Mourinho as the manager. “I met Mourinho face to face last week. We had a 2-hour meeting. I told him, ‘Fenerbahçe needs you and you need Fenerbahçe. There will be three presidential candidates and whichever one wins, come to Fenerbahçe. Don't come because I want you to.’ I told him that he could make the same breakthrough at Fenerbahçe that he started at Porto in 2003. He welcomed it with pleasure. The negotiations between my friends and his agents continue.”

“Most probably, if we win (the presidential election), I will bring Mourinho to Fenerbahçe. We don't want the fans to be sad anymore. He told us that he watched the Konyaspor match live and expressed what he saw there. We were also pleased with this,” Yıldırım added.

Aziz Yıldırım was the Fenerbahçe president between 1998 and 2018. In the 2018 Fenerbahçe presidential election, he lost to Ali Koç after not winning the league for four years. 

The Fenerbahçe football team became the league champion in 2014 for the last time.