Jose Mourinho’s Fenerbahce struggles to match Ismail Kartal’s era
Under the management of head coach Jose Mourinho, Fenerbahce has dropped 7 points in their first 8 matches of the Trendyol Super Lig, falling short of last season’s performance. Last season, under former coach Ismail Kartal, Fenerbahce finished second in the 2023-2024 season with 99 points. During the first 8-week period of that season, the team did not drop any points and kept a clean sheet in 6 of the matches.
Under Kartal’s leadership, Fenerbahce secured 24 points from matches against Gaziantep FK, Samsunspor, MKE Ankaragucu, Antalyaspor, Corendon Alanyaspor, RAMS Basaksehir, Caykur Rizespor, and Kasimpasa, scoring 20 goals and conceding only 3. The team won the first-week match against Gaziantep FK 2-1 and the fourth-week match against Antalyaspor 3-2, while not allowing their opponents to score in the remaining 6 matches.
Kartal’s team finished the season with 31 wins, 6 draws, and just 1 loss in 38 matches, losing a total of 15 points. In contrast, under Mourinho, Fenerbahce has already dropped 7 points in the first 8 games of this season.
8 POINTS BEHIND THE LEAD
Last season, under Ismail Kartal’s leadership, Fenerbahce made a record-breaking start by winning 10 out of 10 matches. However, under Jose Mourinho, they are now 8 points behind the top spot in the 9th week, with one game in hand.
In their 8 matches, Fenerbahce recorded 5 wins, 2 draws, and 1 loss, scoring 18 goals and conceding 7. Mourinho’s team kept a clean sheet in their victories against Adana Demirspor, Caykur Rizespor, Corendon Alanyaspor, Kasimpasa, and Onvo Antalyaspor. However, in the 3 matches where they conceded goals, they dropped points.
In the second week, Fenerbahce could not hold onto their lead against Goztepe, ending the match in a 2-2 draw. In week 6, they suffered a 3-1 defeat at home to their archrival Galatasaray. Most recently, in the Samsunspor match, despite leading twice, they had to settle for a 2-2 draw.
While Fenerbahce never dropped out of the top two under Ismail Kartal last season, they ended the 9th week in 4th place under Jose Mourinho’s management.
