Manchester United will travel to Turkey to face former manager Jose Mourinho's Fenerbahce following the Europa League's revamped draw on Friday.

The new league phase format sees each of the 36 teams play eight games, four at home and four away.

During his two-and-a-half-year spell at United, Mourinho led them to Europa League glory in 2017, beating Ajax 2-0 in the final.

The Red Devils' remaining seven games include an all-British home clash against Rangers, welcoming them to Old Trafford for the first time in 14 years, and a trip to another of Mourinho's old clubs, Porto.

Rangers, who have failed to win any of their last 13 games in major European competition against English opposition, will also face Tottenham and Conference League winners Olympiakos.

Spurs, winners of the inaugural tournament in 1972, will also meet Roma and Galatasaray in their other seven fixtures.

Meanwhile, in the Conference League, Chelsea's draw includes League of Ireland side Shamrock Rovers at home and a trip to Panathinaikos.

The Blues, who narrowly qualified for the competition on Thursday, have never faced any of their six opponents in any competition before. 

Jose Mourinho recited his famous "if I speak" one-liner following Fenerbahce's late exit from the Champions League to Lille on Tuesday. 

Mourinho's side looked on course to take the tie to penalties after Bafode Diakite's late own-goal levelled the aggregate scores in Istanbul. 

But there was to be more drama as Jonathan David's long-range shot struck Jayden Oosterwolde's outstretched arm, with a penalty given after a VAR review. 

David would step up to score from 12 yards in the 118th-minute, meaning the Turkish side will play in the Europa League next season as Mourinho faces a possible reunion with Manchester United or Tottenham. 

In his post-match assessment, Mourinho repeated his iconic remark that was first said during his time in charge of Chelsea. 

The comments came after Chelsea's 1-0 defeat to Aston Villa in the 2013-14 season, an encounter that saw Ramires, Willian and Mourinho himself sent off by Chris Foy.

He then re-used the line as he seemed to disagree with the penalty that was awarded to Lille in the closing stages of the encounter at the Sukru Saracoglu Stadium. 

"We can do very well in the Europa League, but if... I prefer not to continue with this sentence," Mourinho said.

"Because if I say it, I will get into trouble. It's better not to talk about the penalty. When I look at other incidents that have happened to me recently.

"Only the referee knows why it was a penalty, only the VAR knows. I'm proud of my team."

Youssef En-Nesyri has left Sevilla to join Jose Mourinho at Fenerbahce, the Turkish club confirmed on Thursday. 

En-Nesyri, who scored 73 times in 196 appearances for the La Liga side, has signed a five-year deal for a reported €20million fee. 

The 27-year-old had previously spent all of his professional career in Spain, enjoying spells at Malaga and Leganes before finding his best form with Sevilla. 

En-Nesyri helped Los Nervionenses triumph in the Europa League on two occasions, scoring six goals across 15 appearances in those respective campaigns. 

The Morocco international also played a pivotal role in the Atlas Lions' semi-final run at the 2022 World Cup, netting twice in Qatar. 

En-Nesyri's transfer to the 19-time Super Lig champions sees him become their most expensive player, surpassing Cengiz Under's €15million move from Marseille last year. 

 

Euro 2024 hosts Germany got off to a flying start as they comprehensively dispatched Scotland 5-1 on Friday.

Goals from Florian Wirtz, Jamal Musiala, Kai Havertz and Niclas Fullkrug blew Scotland away at the Allianz Arena.

But while the football entertained, there was also plenty of action on social media.

Here's a pick of the best posts.

The special... two?

Jose Mourinho and Alex Ferguson enjoyed a great rivalry on the touchline down the years, but there was no sign of that as the two watched on from the stands in Munich.

Unfortunately for Ferguson, Scotland were on the receiving end of a hammering.

We can only wonder what these two greats had to say about Scotland's sorry performance, though surely they will have been full of praise for Germany.

Honouring a great

Franz Beckenbauer passed away in January, and ahead of the opening game, his wife Heidi led a touching tribute to der Kaiser.

Moral support

Nathan Patterson is not fit to feature for Scotland, but the Everton full-back has travelled out to Germany to support his team-mates.

Unfortunately for Scotland, it didn't quite work out, and Patterson will be needing to provide plenty of moral support after their heavy defeat in Munich.

Pickford gets quizzed

England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford was fulfilling his media duties on Friday, and he stopped by to answer some fan questions ahead of the Three Lions' opener against Serbia.

Pickford was quizzed on how he copes with the pressure as kick-off approaches - "Enjoy the moment", he said - while revealing former England shot-stopper Joe Hart, who retired last month, has served as an inspiration.

Young guns exciting Schweinsteiger 

Bastian Schweinsteiger helped Germany to World Cup glory in 2014, so it feels like he is pretty well placed to pass judgement on up and coming stars.

And when asked on X for the players he was most excited to see in action at Euro 2024, the former Bayern Munich midfielder picked out Florian Wirtz, Cole Palmer and Rafael Leao.

Wirtz certainly delivered, as he starred in Germany's big win over Scotland. Will Palmer and Leao be equally as impressive for England and Portugal respectively?

Picture perfect

Olivier Giroud is one handsome devil, so it's no surprise that he's a photographer's dream.

That being said, it's rare that the person behind the camera is one of his team-mates, but Giroud could only smile, and offer a cheeky pose, as Benjamin Pavard sneakily grabbed a camera and tried to get the perfect shot while the France number nine was holding a press conference.

Jose Mourinho believes his move to Fenerbahce will draw more attention to the Turkish Super Lig.

On Sunday, the 61-year-old was announced as Fenerbahce's new head coach on a two-year deal, his first job since being dismissed by Roma in January.

Turkey is the fifth different nation in which Mourinho has managed, having previously enjoyed stints at Porto, Chelsea, Inter, Real Madrid, Manchester United and Tottenham, winning a combined total of eight domestic titles and two Champions Leagues.

Speaking at his first Fenerbahce press conference, Mourinho admitted he expected more people to pay attention to the club now he is in charge.

"One of the things is, I bring attention in with me. More people in Europe will follow the Turkish league," he said.

"I'm coming to work for Turkish football, for Turkish Super Lig. But fundamentally I come for Fenerbahce.

"When people look at me -- I did six finals, I won five of them -- people think immediately big, but I think we have to go step by step."

Fenerbahce finished runners-up in the Turkish Super Lig last season on 99, behind Galatasaray, extending their 10-year wait for a top-flight trophy.

Mourinho has won silverware at all but one of his clubs, only failing to get his hands on a trophy at Spurs.

The Portuguese icon has urged the Fenerbahce fans to push the side to end that wait for a league title.

"I make zero promises [to the Fenerbahce fans] but [promise] a huge commitment, passion, work, empathy in relation to them," he added.

"The way to express that is the way we are going to work. This shirt is going to be my skin, it's an expression that defines my mentality and that I want everyone at the club to have. The main dream is to win the Turkish Super Lig.

"For me, Fenerbahce means ambition.

"The fans don't need to be patient, they need to be mad, they have to be demanding. If the players cannot deal with that pressure, they don't belong at Fenerbahce.

"I want that passion. I want the players to trust me, to know that I am very honest, very direct, sometimes not the nicest guy, but always honest with them."

Jose Mourinho promised Fenerbahce supporters "your dreams are now my dreams" upon his unveiling as the club's new head coach.

The 61-year-old is back in management five months after his departure from Roma, after reportedly putting pen to paper on a two-year deal with the Istanbul giants.

The club teased Mourinho's arrival in the wake of Ismail Kartal’s departure on Friday, with the two-time Champions League winner believed to have verbally agreed to take over on the same day.

Turkey is the fifth different nation in which the Portuguese icon has managed, having also previously enjoyed stints at Porto, Chelsea, Inter, Real Madrid, Manchester United and Tottenham.

A domestic title winner in four different countries, Mourinho will now look to follow suit by guiding Fenerbahce to a first Turkish Super Lig triumph in 10 years.

"I want to thank you for your love, the love that I felt from the first moment where my name was first connected with Fenerbahce," he told thousands of supporters who gathered at Sukru Saracoglu Stadium to welcome him.

"Normally, a coach is loved after victories. In this case, I feel that I am loved before victories. That, for me, is a big responsibility that I feel. I promise you that from this moment, I belong to your family. This shirt is my skin.

"Football is a passion and there is no better place to feel that passion. Since the moment I met with [club president] Ali Koc, I wanted to play for you because, in the end, you are the soul of the football club.

"I want to work for Turkish football, I want to work for the Turkish league. I want to help to improve [it] but the most important thing for me is not Turkish football, it's not the Turkish league, it's Fenerbahce.

"To finish, I want to say that from the moment I signed my contract, your dreams are now my dreams."

Jose Mourinho has been confirmed as the new head coach of Fenerbahce.

The Istanbul giants teased Mourinho's arrival in the wake of Ismail Kartal’s departure, and he has reportedly penned a two-year deal with the club.

Kartal took charge of Fenerbahce for three spells, finishing second behind Galatasaray in the Turkish Super Lig last season with 99 points in his final stint.

Reports said Mourinho had verbally agreed to take over on Friday, before the club confirmed his unveiling will take place on Sunday.

Mourinho has been out of work since leaving Roma in January after a two-and-a-half-year spell at the club in which he led them to their first European trophy, winning the Europa Conference League in 2022, while also taking them to the Europa League final the following year.

The 61-year-old had previously enjoyed stints at Porto, Chelsea over two spells, Inter, Real Madrid, Manchester United and Tottenham.

During that course, he won a combined eight domestic titles and two Champions Leagues, only failing to lift silverware while at Tottenham.

Mourinho is now tasked with ending Fenerbahce’s 10-year wait for a Super Lig title. 

Jose Mourinho has "started negotiations" with Fenerbahce over becoming their new head coach, the Turkish Super Lig side has confirmed.

The 61-year-old is reportedly nearing a return to management, five months after he was sacked by Roma.

Fenerbahce are searching for a new boss after parting company with Ismail Kartal on Friday, after he guided them to a second-place finish behind Galatasaray - amassing an impressive 99 points.

And the Yellow Canaries revealed on public disclosure platform KAP - as part of a legal process to alert investors - they are in talks with the decorated Portuguese coach.

"Our company has started negotiations with Jose Mario Dos Santos Mourinho Felix for the post of Football A team coach," the Fenerbahce post read.

Turkey would be the fifth different country in which Mourinho has managed, with the former Real Madrid, Chelsea and Inter coach winning eight domestic titles across four different nations.

He has also won five major European competitions during his managerial career - including two Champions League crowns with Porto and Inter - while guiding Roma to their maiden continental triumph in the inaugural Europa Conference League two years ago.

Bayer Leverkusen will use last campaign's Europa League loss against Roma as motivation to get the job done this time, so says Xabi Alonso.

Leverkusen were knocked out by Roma after a goalless draw in the second leg of the Europa League semis last season, losing the tie 1-0 on aggregate.

But a few things have changed since then with Alonso's side, who are now on an extraordinary 48-match unbeaten run this campaign, ending Bayern Munich's 11-year stranglehold on the Bundesliga title to secure their first trophy since 1993.

They are also a step closer to a treble, having beaten Roma 2-0 away in the first leg last week and reaching the DFB-Cup final against Kaiserslautern.

"We haven't forget (forgotten) last season, we felt it. We need to use this energy and hopeful we can celebrate at the end. We will put all of our focus on the full 90 minutes. We want to deserve our win and make the final in Dublin," Alonso told reporters.

The Spaniard, however, said Leverkusen will have to be on their toes despite their advantage as he believes Roma will continue to be dangerous opponents under manager Daniele De Rossi, who replaced Jose Mourinho in January.

"A second leg is always a dangerous situation no matter the result before," Alonso said.

"We are preparing to play well with good motivation and at our own game. We want to be aggressive, control and defend well as a team.

"We are expecting Roma to come with the hope of qualifying."

Erik ten Hag has hit back at Jose Mourinho after the former Manchester United manager said he did not get the same level of support as the Dutchman.

Mourinho, who spent two and a half years in charge of United, suggested in an interview with the Telegraph that he did not have the same backing in the transfer market, or the same level of "trust" instilled in him as Ten Hag.

The former Ajax manager recently spoke to Sky Sports about failing to sign stars like Harry Kane, with the club instead choosing to invest in younger players with potential, like Rasmus Hojlund.

Ten Hag is facing an uncertain future at the club with just one year left on his contract following a disappointing second campaign. New co-owner Jim Ratcliffe has given no guarantees that he will keep his post next season.

Now, Ten Hag has responded to Mourinho’s claims, stating that the Portuguese coach was the only manager after Alex Ferguson to be given backing by the board.

Speaking to ESPN Brazil, Ten Hag said: "Apart from Mourinho, the manager didn't get the players they wanted, and that is what you need.

"I am confident we will achieve our goals, but it is a tough competition. It is not a two-horse race anymore.

"There are seven, eight [teams in the Premier League] who all go for the title, who all have very good squads. So if you want to go to the title, you have to construct that squad."

On this day in 2018, Arsene Wenger announced he would step down as Arsenal manager at the end of the season after almost 22 years in the role.

Appointed in September 1996, the Frenchman had presided over a glittering period in the club’s history which yielded three Premier League titles, the last of them famously secured by his “Invincibles”, who went through the 2003-04 league campaign unbeaten.

In addition, former Nancy, Monaco and Grampus Eight boss Wenger guided the club to FA Cup glory on seven occasions and secured 20 successive seasons of Champions League football during a reign spanning 1,235 matches, 828 of them in the top flight.

However, his announcement came amid mounting disquiet over the club’s showing in both the Premier League and Europe, with three FA Cup successes in four years failing to placate his critics.

Wenger said: “After careful consideration and following discussions with the club, I feel it is the right time for me to step down at the end of the season.

“I am grateful for having had the privilege to serve the club for so many memorable years. I managed the club with full commitment and integrity.”

Majority owner Stan Kroenke paid tribute to the man who had gone toe-to-toe with Manchester United counterpart Sir Alex Ferguson and Chelsea’s Jose Mourinho.

Kroenke said: “This is one of the most difficult days we have ever had in all our years in sport.

“One of the main reasons we got involved with Arsenal was because of what Arsene has brought to the club on and off the pitch.

“His longevity and consistency over such a sustained period at the highest level of the game will never be matched. Arsene has unparalleled class and we will always be grateful to him.”

Wenger, described by Ferguson as “without doubt one of the greatest Premier League managers” and by former Gunners skipper Tony Adams as “the greatest Arsenal manager”, bowed out after a 1-0 final-day victory at Huddersfield on May 13, 2018.

The 68-year-old said afterwards: “I feel that I got a lot of respect not only from our fans, but from England. I would reiterate I loved English football, but I also learned to love England. You do not stay 22 years if you don’t like it.”

Jose Mourinho was sacked as manager of Tottenham on this day in 2021, less than a week before he was due to lead them out for the Carabao Cup final.

Spurs’ Premier League form was what ultimately cost the Portuguese his job, with his last match in charge a 2-2 draw with Everton which left Tottenham seventh, five points off the Champions League places and with just one win from their last five league games.

Mourinho’s dismissal after just 17 months at the helm was announced hours after Tottenham had confirmed they intended to join a breakaway European Super League, plans that were swiftly aborted after fans’ backlash, although that was unrelated to the Portuguese’s axing.

The 58-year-old was denied the chance of delivering the club’s first piece of silverware in 13 years, with academy coach Ryan Mason put in caretaker charge as Tottenham lost 1-0 to Manchester City in the EFL Cup showpiece.

Spurs striker Harry Kane, whose form that season had been a bright spot with 47 goal contributions in 43 games, wrote on Twitter: “Thank you for everything Boss. A pleasure to have worked together. I wish you all the best for your next chapter.”

Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy spoke of his regret following Mourinho’s departure, having long coveted the former Chelsea and Real Madrid boss.

Levy said on the club’s official website: “Jose and his coaching staff have been with us through some of our most challenging times as a club.

“Jose is a true professional who showed enormous resilience during the (Covid-19) pandemic. On a personal level I have enjoyed working with him and regret that things have not worked out as we both had envisaged.

“He will always be welcome here and we should like to thank him and his coaching staff for their contribution.”

Mason remained steward until the end of the season before making way for Mourinho’s fellow Portuguese Nuno Espirito Santo, who had a disappointing four-month spell in charge

Mikel Arteta wants Arsenal to end their season in “beautiful” fashion after they were knocked out of the Champions League by Bayern Munich.

The Gunners lost 1-0 at the Allianz Arena as Joshua Kimmich’s second-half header was enough to seal a semi-final against Real Madrid with a 3-2 aggregate victory.

It followed on from a 2-0 home loss to Aston Villa on Sunday that has dented Arsenal’s Premier League title chances.

They travel to Wolves on Saturday evening needing a reaction to a poor week and Arteta feels his side will approach the game in the correct manner.

Asked how painful the Champions League exit was, the Spaniard said: “It’s there.

“It’s not going to go away, certainly tonight, but I can guarantee you by tomorrow we’re fully focused on Wolves and everybody is lifted.

“What we still have to play for is beautiful. I said before it’s time to be next to these players.

“It’s easy to be behind them and praise the players and talk nice things when we win 10 in a row and one draw.

“The moment is now to be behind them and be next to them.”

After a tight game in which Bayern also hit the woodwork twice and Gabriel Martinelli missed a glorious chance to put the away side ahead, Arteta said his side are continuing to learn after returning to the Champions League for the first time in seven years.

“We haven’t played this competition for seven years and we haven’t been in this stage for 14 years,” he added.

“There’s a reason for it. We want to do everything fast forward, super quick in one season. I think we have the capacity and the quality to be in the semi-final because the margins are very small.

“Those margins are coming from something else that maybe we don’t have yet. We have to learn it. When you look historically it took other clubs seven, eight or 10 years to do it. Today that’s not going to make us feel better that’s for sure.”

While Arsenal are still relatively inexperienced at this level, Bayern are now preparing for a ninth semi-final in the competition since the Gunners last made it that far.

Manager Thomas Tuchel also becomes just the second man, after Jose Mourinho, to guide three different clubs to the final four and was pleased with the performance of the hosts.

“It’s always better to play in front of your own fans,” he said.

“With every tackle and every good action you get the support and it lifts you and gives you a second wind.

“Now it’s the semi-finals and everyone needs to step up – we need to step up and the supporters need to step up again.

“It was a chess game in the first half. Nobody wanted to make the first mistake. Everyone played a bit safe – there were moments for us, there were moments for Arsenal.

“We encouraged the team at half-time to show a bit more personality, a bit more courage. We were more fluid and played a fantastic second half. We deserved to win.”

Rafael Leao is determined to silence his critics when AC Milan seek to overturn a 1-0 deficit in the second leg of their Europa League quarter-final against Roma.

Leao came in for criticism after last week’s first match, but showed a much better version of himself as Milan fought back from two goals down to take a 3-3 draw at relegation-battling Sassuolo on Sunday.

The 24-year-old forward, who scored Milan’s first goal, recognises he needs to bring more consistency to his game.

“I hope to help my team,” Leao told Milan TV.

“If I don’t score a goal, I hope to play well and win. This is the most important thing, to move forward.

“After the first leg, where I didn’t do very well, I was disappointed and with Sassuolo I wanted to give the right answer. If I make a mistake, I always try to come back even stronger, to learn from my mistakes.

“I found the joy of doing well and helping my team-mates. I want to play better now. We know the comeback is possible. We have to start strong, try to score in the first few minutes and then play like a final.”

Goalkeeper Mike Maignan is expected to return in goal after sitting out Sunday’s match as a precaution, but Simon Kjaer is a doubt after suffering a muscle injury in that match. Both he and fellow defender Pierre Kalulu missed training on Wednesday.

Gianluca Mancini struck in the 17th minute as Roma took an impressive 1-0 victory at the San Siro last week, carrying on their good form since Daniele De Rossi replaced Jose Mourinho in the hotseat.

The 2022 Europa Conference League champions came ever so close to making it back-to-back titles after they were defeated on penalties in last year’s Europa League showpiece and are 90 minutes away from another semi-final.

But De Rossi knows AC Milan are far from beaten as they prepare for the second leg in Rome.

As quoted on romapress.net, he said: “Milan? They will fight with everything they have. This is their last resort, they want to win and achieve one of their objectives for the season. It will be difficult.

“There are characteristics of the opponent that must always be respected and you need to think about the opponent’s coach’s moves. The first leg with Milan was quite balanced, perhaps it went a little better for us. Milan won’t change their tactics too much, but we must not overthink our own gameplan.

“We will prepare the match to win it, to try to score a goal which would be a blow for them even if it might not be decisive.

“Milan are a very strong team, they are better than us, but in the first leg we showed that we are not that much inferior and I told my team that we can play for it. We are one step away from an important milestone such as a European semi-final.”

AC Milan coach Stefano Pioli believes now is the time for his players to show their strengths heading into the defining period of the campaign, starting with an all-Italian Europa League quarter-final against Roma.

The Rossoneri are on a run of seven straight wins in all competitions and sit second in Serie A, six points clear of Juventus.

However, with hopes of the Scudetto all but over given the healthy lead of rivals Inter at the top of the table, Pioli knows all of that hard work will count for nothing if his squad do not last the distance in Europe.

“We are in a good moment, but now comes the most important moment of the season which will decide the balance of our season, what we have done, our positive or negative path,” Pioli told a press conference.

“This is the moment which we must demonstrate our strength, demonstrate that the journey we have had through ups and downs has improved us. It depends on us.”

Pioli added: “We have to play the whole match with attention, quality, intensity and maximum minute by minute.

“We want to win, we will try. For me we are not that far from the level of the best in Europe – we play modern football and we are competitive”

Milan will be without defender Fikayo Tomori through suspension, but Simon Kjaer and Malick Thiaw have returned to training with the rest of the squad.

Roma head to San Siro on the back of a derby win over city rivals Lazio, which left them fifth in the table and three points behind Bologna in the battle for Champions League qualification.

Milan have beaten Roma in both of their Serie A fixtures this season.

The 3-1 defeat at San Siro in January saw Roma part ways with manager Jose Mourinho and install former player Daniele De Rossi until the end of the season.

Pioli is expecting a stern test from the Giallorossi, who knocked out English side Brighton to reach the last eight.

“I think De Rossi is doing an excellent job,” the Milan boss said.

“It wasn’t easy to overcome a team that defended with many players when Mourinho was there, probably tomorrow we will find a different opponent with different characteristics.

“We know what Roma are about and their important players, but we don’t know what we will face tomorrow.

“However, we are prepared and mature enough to be able to read what they concede to us and then also make the most of our own skillsets.”

Page 1 of 17
© 2024 SportsMaxTV All Rights Reserved.