Jose Mourinho has opened up on the red card he picked up during Fenerbahce’s Europa League clash with Manchester United last week.
Mourinho, who used to manage United, is now in charge of the Turkish side and led them to a 1-1 draw with the Red Devils last Thursday, with the Portuguese’s outfit coming from behind.
But the game was dominated by the veteran manager, who was sent off in the second half of the game following protests against a refereeing decision.
It was the latest episode of what has been a chaotic managerial career for Mourinho, but he has now opened up on the events which took place just a matter of hours ago.
Speaking to Sky Sports, he attempted to explain what happened, and continued to plead his innocence.
Jose Mourinho has explained his red card against Manchester United, picked up last week
The Fenerbahce manager was sent to the stands by the referee during the Europa League tie
He also opened up on his relationship with UEFA and feels he is ‘in trouble’ in European competitions
‘I was just screaming, like everyone on the bench and in the stadium, “It’s a penalty, it’s a penalty!” without any kind of insult, and I get a red card,’ he said. ‘I know it’s a battle I can never win.
Asked if he deserves better treatment, he replied: ‘I deserve to be (treated) like everybody else. On the pitch it doesn’t matter if you are Lionel Messi or playing your first match. The rules are the same for Messi and the young kid.
‘For coaches it’s the same thing. It doesn’t matter if you are Carlo Ancelotti or a young coach just starting. Ancelotti has to behave the same way as the young kid has to behave.’
After the game, Mourinho gave a press conference which grabbed attention for his words aimed in the direction of UEFA.
He joked he would be prepared to coach a team near the bottom of the Premier League in England when he leaves Fenerbahce to avoid UEFA competitions, saying: ‘I think the best thing I have to do is when I leave Fenerbahce, I go to a club that does not play UEFA competitions.
‘If any club in England from the bottom of the table needs a coach in two years, I am ready to go. I don’t want to say anything more about it.’
The Portuguese picked out one game that he feels was a turning point – the 2023 Europa League final
He added of his relationship with UEFA: ‘I don’t want to have special treatment, I want to have honest treatment. Just that. So if I do something wrong punish and pay, but if I do nothing wrong leave me in peace, but it’s getting difficult.
‘Since that Budapest final it’s getting difficult. The feeling is, I am in trouble in Europe. I lost a final in a way that I still don’t accept, and since then I feel it (a penalty shootout defeat by Sevilla in the 2023 Europa League final).’