Fenerbahce manager Jose Mourinho insists things might’ve been different against Rangers had some of his best players been available.
Rangers romped to a stunning 3-1 win over Fenerbahce and whilst the Special One didn’t want to take anything away from the Ibrox side, the Portuguese manager reckons absences hit the Turks hard.
That’s despite the value of the Fenerbahce squad dwarfing Rangers on the night.
Namely, it was the absence of influential midfielder Fred through suspension which irked Mourinho, with the ex-Manchester United star back in the squad for the Europa League trip to face Rangers.
But ahead of this crunch Europa League Round of 16 second leg, Fenerbahce have been rocked by the news that one influential player will not travel.
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Fenerbahce star dropped for Rangers trip
Fenerbahce have a talent-strewn squad with some of the most high-profile footballers of the last few seasons propping up Jose Mourinho’s team.
But whilst the likes of Eden Dzeko, Dusan Tadic and Youssef En-Nesyri will be trying to make amends against Rangers, one big name is not set to make the trip.
Former Newcastle United winger Allan Saint-Maximin came off the bench against Rangers in Turkey and was a lively outlet on the left-hand side.
But the winger was not included in Fenerbahce’s squad for the clash against Rangers, the likes of Fred and Bright Osayi-Samuel returning instead.
According to Turkish journalist Yagiz Sabuncuoglu, Saint-Maximin will not make the trip to Glasgow due to a ‘decision by the technical staff’.
Saint-Maximin is on loan from Saudi club Al-Hilal for the season with TalkSPORT claiming that Fenerbahce are paying a reported £3.4m in wages to take the player for the year.
Allan Saint-Maximin drops cryptic birthday clue
With the 12th of March being Allan Saint-Maximin’s birthday, Fenerbahce have wished the French winger many happy returns.
But it’s not been a happy birthday so far for the 28-year-old, who has reacted to being dropped by Jose Mourinho on social media.
The former Magpies winger has taken to Instagram in a cryptic suggestion that all is not as it appears ahead of the Turkish side’s trip to Glasgow.
Saint-Maximin left a post on his main feed which translates to: “It’s going to take more than that to bring me down. When lies take the elevator, the truth takes the stairs, it takes longer but it always ends up arriving.”
Whilst we’ll wait to hear from Jose with regards the Frenchman, this is a headache the Fenerbahce manager could’ve certainly been done without heading into the clash with Rangers.
