Fenerbahce manager Jose Mourinho was handed a four-match ban and fined by the Turkish Football Federation (TFF) on Thursday following his comments about Turkish referees after a match at Istanbul rivals Galatasaray.
The TFF fined the 62-year-old Portuguese 1,617,000 Turkish lira ($44,000) after he criticised the match officials in a news conference following the 0-0 Super Lig draw on Monday.
The penalties were due to “derogatory and offensive statements towards the Turkish referee” and accusations of chaos and disorder in Turkish football, the TFF said.
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The TFF said Mourinho’s remarks violated sports ethics, promoted violence and disorder and could incite fan incidents.
Monday’s game was refereed by Slovenian Slavko Vincic after both clubs requested a foreign official take charge.
After the match, Mourinho made a point of praising the referee, highlighting the fact he was not from Turkey.
“The performance of the referee was a top performance,” Mourinho said.
“Anyone, not just from this country but also abroad, watched a big football match. I think the man responsible for that was the referee.
Mourinho was also asked about an incident early in the game involving his 19-year-old defender Yusuf Akcicek, to which he said: “Again, I have to thank the referee because with a Turkish referee after the big dive and the first minute and their bench jumping like monkeys on top of the kids.
“A Turkish referee would have [given Akcicek] a yellow card after one minute, and after five minutes I would have to change him.”
Galatasaray have said they will “initiate criminal proceedings” and report Mourinho to FIFA and UEFA over what they called “racist statements.”
Fenerbahce issued a statement on Tuesday defending Mourinho, saying his comments were taken out of context and deliberately distorted. The club said it was planning to take a legal action “against this baseless accusation.”
Former Chelsea, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur manager Mourinho has previously been fined and suspended for his comments about Turkish match officials.
