In the first leg of the UEFA Champions League play-off round, Fenerbahçe were held to a goalless draw at home against Benfica. After the match at Chobani Stadium, head coach José Mourinho stated that the tie is still wide open.
Speaking at the post-match press conference, Mourinho admitted his team failed to find solutions in attack.
He emphasized that the outcome did not change the balance of favorites:
"Nothing has changed in terms of who the favorite is. Benfica are a big club and today they showed that with their experience. They demonstrated how to keep the game under control in crucial moments. Playing away and playing at home are, of course, very different things. As I said yesterday, if we get eliminated at Luz, I will congratulate them. But I cannot say this tie is over. There is no favorite; the tie is balanced right now."
Referring to Benfica’s composure even after going down to 10 men, Mourinho continued:
"They knew how to manage the game well. With little fouls that often go unnoticed, and with the referee calling a lot of fouls, they handled it smartly. We couldn’t score because we didn’t have enough solutions. We didn’t have many ways to unlock the game. That’s what happened. With our new signing, if he had been able to play today, it could have been important — we didn’t have fast players, so we couldn’t change the game differently. But overall, I don’t think it was a great game at the highest level. It wasn’t beautiful, but it was a tough fight. We played against a team that wanted the draw, and that’s how it ended. We wanted to win, but we couldn’t."
— “We’re not using set pieces well”
Mourinho also expressed frustration at his team’s inability to create danger from set pieces.
"We train set pieces, that’s the truth. If I tell you we worked on them, I would be telling the truth — but we simply couldn’t execute them. You can have two-meter-tall players, but if the ball doesn’t clear the first man, you can’t create danger. We had three corners where the ball didn’t even get past the near post. I can recall three such situations today."
On the subject of Kerem Aktürkoğlu’s inclusion, Mourinho said:
"I think Benfica thought only in sporting terms regarding Kerem. That’s my opinion — they didn’t think about the financial side. They prioritized the sporting aspect. Benfica could have sold the player for a big fee, but for now, they chose to focus on their current sporting objective. The coach wanted him to play, and most likely we’ll see him again at Luz. They didn’t hesitate because of money; they acted like a big club. They played him because they want to reach the group stage. For me, it wasn’t a big surprise to see him on the pitch."
Mourinho added that Benfica’s defensive approach was not a criticism but a sign of respect:
"Let me be clear — this is not a criticism. Of course, for a team like Benfica to start and play in this manner shows the respect they had for us. That made me happy, because they are a team with more potential and more quality. They saw the way we played against Feyenoord. When you set up with five defenders, strategically they achieved what they wanted. They got the result they came for. I think it’s a good result for them. There’s nothing to criticize about it. I myself once played defensively with ten men at Barcelona."
In the first leg of the UEFA Champions League play-off round, Benfica held Fenerbahçe to a goalless draw away from home. After the match at Chobani Stadium, Benfica head coach Bruno Lage said his team had prepared very well for the game.
Speaking at the post-match press conference, Lage explained that they had thoroughly analyzed their opponents.
"We prepared very well for this match. In the first half, we controlled the game, we controlled possession. But in the second half, we didn’t start well and wanted to respond. With the substitutions, we tried to create attacks and win the game. We thought space could open up, but unfortunately after the red card the strategy of the game changed. From that moment on, we had to fight hard to finish the match, and we did that well."
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