Mourinho's Fenerbahçe election statement: "It doesn't concern me, I didn't feel any passion"

Jose Mourinho, who took over as head coach of Benfica after leaving Fenerbahçe, made a statement at the press conference before their match against Rio Ave.

Mourinho, when asked about the selection at Fenerbahçe during his press conference, said, "The selection at Fenerbahçe doesn't concern me; I have no ties to it. Am I happy that Ali Koç wasn't re-elected? No. My time there was short, it wasn't very intense, I didn't feel much empathy or passion. I hope everything goes well for the players who remain there."

"I HAD NO CONTACT WITH BENFICA"

"If you want to believe me, great, but if you don't, there's nothing I can do. I'm telling you the truth. I had no contact with Benfica during the summer. Mario Branco wasn't with Benfica at the time. I had a contract with Fenerbahçe, and I wanted to fulfill it to the fullest. I never considered returning to Portugal as a club coach. I thought I would take charge of the national team now or later, but I had no contact with the federation. My career was heading in that direction, and I thought I would return to Portugal to coach the national team."

"OUR COMMUNICATION HAS ENDED"

"When Mario Branco came to Benfica and there was a 25 percent chance he would play against Fenerbahçe, our contact ended. There was no communication. I was in Barcelona with my wife when Benfica lost to Qarabağ, and the next day it wasn't him who called me, it was the president. He asked if there was any point in our conversation, and I said we could. And that's the end of the story. If you want to believe me, great, thank you. If you don't want to believe me, there's nothing I can do to make you believe me."

SPORTING AND PORTO STATEMENT

"The conversation I had with presidents Varandas (Sporting president) and Villas-Boas (Porto president) was very simple. It was something like, 'Good luck, I hope you finish second.' If I had received an offer from them, I don't know if I would have accepted it. But as quickly as I said yes to Benfica, no."

"I COULDN'T DO IT IN ROMA AND FENERBAHÇE"

"If I had stayed at home until the end of the season, I would have earned more than I did at Benfica. Why did I come here? I missed playing for championships. I couldn't do that at Roma or Fenerbahçe."

Source: Cumhuriyet