Jose Mourinho has been revealed as the new coach of Fenerbahce.
The Turkish Super Lig club confirmed on Saturday that it had opened talks with the former Manchester United, Chelsea and Real Madrid coach.
Fenerbahce later posted a video of Mourinho on its social media channels, in which he said: “Hello (hello) Fenerbahce fans. See you tomorrow in Kadikoy and let’s start our journey together.
More than 200,000 people watched the unveiling on YouTube after Fenerbahce broadcast the event online.
Mourinho said: “I want to thank you for your love. Usually a coach is loved after victories. In this case, I feel loved before victories. This for me is a great responsibility that I feel.
“I promise you from this moment on that I belong to your family. This shirt is my skin. Football is passion and there is no better place to feel this passion.
“From the moment I met the president, I wanted to play with you because you are the soul of the club. I want to be a coach for all of you.
“I want to work in Turkish football. I want to help the Turkish League. But the most important thing for me is Fenerbahce.
“From the moment I sign my contract, your dreams are now my dreams.”
(Ali Atmaja/Anadolu via Getty Images)
The 61-year-old coach has stayed away from football since his dismissal from coaching Roma last January. He will replace Ismail Kartal, who is in his third spell as coach of Fenerbahce.
Fenerbahce missed out on the title this season against its rival, Galatasaray, despite losing only one match out of 38 league matches and ending the season with 99 points.
They have not won the Turkish Super League since 2014 with the Turkish Cup in 2023, their only major success in the past decade.
Mourinho won 26 trophies during a managerial career that spanned more than two decades. He won the Champions League with Porto and Inter Milan, in addition to league titles with Chelsea and Real Madrid.
His last job was at Roma, where he led the Italian club to its first European title since 1961 with the European Conference League in 2022.
The following season, they lost the Europa League final to Sevilla on penalties.
It will be Mourinho’s first assignment outside the five major European leagues since he took over as Porto coach between 2002 and 2004.
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Mourinho, Roma and the sacking he never expected to happen
(Hakan Akgün/Anatolia via Getty Images)
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