Jose Mourinho never minced his words after Rangers gave Fenerbahce a bloody nose in the Europa League.
Mourinho claims his Fenerbahce side were ‘very bad’ all over the park against Rangers in an honest reaction to the Ibrox side’s stirring 3-1 victory.
But the legendary Portuguese manager has been around the block long enough to know that when it comes to the Europa League tie, this battle is anything but over.
Barry Ferguson agrees with Jose Mourinho and has pledged to have his Rangers upstarts ready to go again at a ferocious Ibrox next week.
But with everything still to play for, Mourinho insists things will be different when Fenerbahce get one of their best players back for the trip to Glasgow.
Fenerbahce star was ‘big absence’ v Rangers
Heading into the clash with Rangers, Jose Mourinho claimed Fenerbahce were at a disadvantage due to several players being missing for the game.
That’s despite the fact Fenerbahce’s squad on the night cost £52.75m more than Rangers to assemble.
Mourinho was specifically referring to suspensions, with Brazilian midfielder Fred and one-time Rangers target Bright Osayi-Samuel missing after accumulating yellow cards.
It’s Mourinho’s belief that this is a disadvantage to the teams who had to come through the playoffs, with Fenerbahce defeating Anderlecht to set up the tie with Rangers.
“When you play so many matches, it’s inevitable for yellow cards to accumulate,” said Mourinho, questioning UEFAs rules. “I don’t think it’s fair for these cards to be valid against teams that have played four matches less than us.”
But what was really grinding Mourinho’s gears was the absence of Brazilian midfielder Fred, who has been a crucial player for Fenerbahce this season.
The former Manchester United star, 32, picked up a fifth yellow card of the tournament in the 2-2 draw with Anderlecht in Belgium.
“Fred has been performing great recently,” explains Mourinho. “He is a big absence.
“We have faced many such difficulties, but we never cried. We somehow find a solution. But yes, Fred is an important missing piece for us.”
Jose Mourinho backs Fred to make Fenerbahce impact
Speaking after the match, Jose Mourinho suggested that his prophecy played out as Rangers’ energetic midfield dominated in Turkey.
Barry Ferguson’s switch in formation allowed Rangers to dominate Fenerbahce’s strikers with three at the back, with the midfield picking up spaces in the pockets time and again.
But with the second leg looming large next week, Jose Mourinho insists things will be different with 90 minutes, or potentially even 120, to come.
What’s more, the Fenerbahce manager reckons that things will be different when the Turkish side have Fred back in the middle of the pitch.
”To speak about Fred is something that I don’t like by my nature but the team was playing fantastic with him in that position there,” said Mourinho.
”Then if somebody later wants to ask me do I think it’s over, no, I don’t think it’s over. I think there is 90 or 120 minutes to play.”
The 32-year-old Brazilian has been hugely influential for Fenerbahce in the middle of the pitch this season, having an impact at both ends of the park.
Not only has Fred scored four goals in the Super Lig, also laying on four assists, but the midfielder has had 29 shots, created 20 chances and made 945 successful passes with an accuracy of 84.3%.
The midfielder has also been crucial defensively, winning the majority of his duels (54%), making 21 interceptions and 119 ball recoveries.
