- Fenerbahce suffered a 3-1 defeat by Rangers in the Europa League last-16
- Jose Mourinho pretended to fall asleep after a lengthy question in an interview
- LISTEN NOW: It’s All Kicking Off! Is Alisson the best goalkeeper in the Premier League?
Jose Mourinho’s frustrations on Thursday night did not end at the final whistle after his Fenerbahce side suffered a 3-1 defeat by Rangers in Istanbul.
Despite the Turkish giants firing 23 shots at the visitors’ goal, they could only find the back of the net once as they prepare to travel to Ibrox next week with a two-goal deficit.
In his post-match press conference, Mourinho was on the other end of a 45-second-long question by a reporter, to which he served up a priceless reaction.
The veteran Portuguese boss pretended to fall asleep at his chair, as the reporter rambled on in Turkish.
Soon after, the question was translated into English – those reading are spared the details of it. It was clearly too much for Mourinho to handle, who interrupted the interpreter mid-way through the question.
‘Oh, this is too much for my head. I’m tired, man,’ he said, while scratching his head.
Jose Mourinho gave an animated reaction when he was asked a 45-second-long question
The Fenerbahce boss pretended to fall asleep during the question in his press conference
His side suffered a 3-1 defeat by Rangers in the first leg of their last-16 Europa League tie
’90 minutes not to listen to all of this, I’m too tired for that.’
Mourinho insisted that a 3-1 defeat for his side was ‘a good result’ — because Rangers could have won by even more.
And he warned the Ibrox club not to ‘celebrate too much’ as the tie is not over ahead of next Thursday’s second leg in Govan.
Asked about his team’s performance on a night when Barry Ferguson’s side also had two goals disallowed, Mourinho said: ‘We were very bad everywhere. I think it’s not fair to say we were very bad in defence, because we were very bad everywhere.
‘Maybe you laugh but, for me, it was a good result, because the way we performed the result could be bigger than this.
‘(Jack) Butland made three fantastic saves. I know that there is, I think, a penalty, but to speak about the referee after this performance, I don’t think it’s ethical.
‘The chances we had to score, we didn’t. The dynamic in midfield was not good. Defensively, we made incredible mistakes. We never controlled that.
‘They (Rangers) defended a lot with the block very low, a good and dangerous counter-attack. So we deserve the punishment of this result.
Despite the defeat, Mourinho insisted that it was a ‘good result’ and that the tie is not over
‘But, if somebody later wants to ask me do I think it’s over, no. I don’t think it’s over. There is 90 or 120 minutes to play.
‘It’s the only positive thing. And from this game, I don’t take any positives. Everything went wrong. The only thing I tell them is, don’t celebrate too much, because there is a second leg. It’s my only advice.’
The winner of the tie between Fenerbahce and Rangers will face either Athletic Bilbao or Roma in the last-eight.
A potential grudge match at Old Trafford between Mourinho and Man United is also on the cards if both teams make the semi-final, with Fenerbahce and the Red Devils in the same bracket.
But first, the Turkish giants must overturn their deficit next week, and United must find another gear when they face Real Sociedad at home, as they were held to a 1-1 draw in Spain on Thursday.
