Fenerbahce manager Jose Mourinho grabbed the nose of Galatasaray head coach Okan Buruk after Fenerbahce were knocked out of the Turkish Cup by their heated rival as Galatasaray won 2-1 thanks to the brace scored by former Napoli striker Victor Osimhen. As things got particularly heated in the last minutes of the game that was played at the Fenerbahce home stadium, the Portuguese manager got close to the rival manager and grabbed him by his nose.
Buruk immediately collapsed on the pitch, attempting to sell the poor gesture of Mourinho, who immediately ran into the dressing room. Mourinho, who managed Chelsea and Inter in his career among other top European clubs, was appointed in the summer of 2024 by Fenerbahce after he was sacked by AS Roma in January 2024. Since he arrived in Turkiye, Mourinho immediately showed his personality and had some big verbal fights with the city rivals, including the one that recently led the same Galatasaray to sue “The Special One” for alleged racist claims, saying the opposing bench jumped “like monkeys” during a February press conference.
The tension between the two historical rivals increased this season also with Mourinho’s arrival in the country, as the former Real Madrid boss often showed his disapproval of the league’s leadership, accusing Galatasaray of corruption on multiple occasions. As Galatasaray are currently leading the league with a six-point margin, the tension raised its peak when the Turkish FA decided to appoint a foreign referee for the last league derby, which took place with 30,000 police officers ready to intervene on the sidelines of the RAMS Park, the home stadium of Galatasaray.
It’s not the first time Mourinho has been at the center of similar episodes that included the rival bench. In August of 2011, Mourinho was part of an incident with Pep Guardiola’s former assistant manager, the late Tito Vilanova, during the second leg of the Spanish Super Cup at the Camp Nou in Barcelona. Back then, Mourinho was the Real Madrid manager and that game in particular marked the peak of the rivalry between the two sides over the past decades.
Right after former Real Madrid defender Marcelo received a red card for a tackle on Cesc Fabregas, Mourinho approached Vilanova from behind and poked him in the eye with his right finger, as the TV images showed in real time. Later, the Spanish FA issued a two-game ban to the same Mourinho and a one-game ban to Vilanova, but both suspensions were lifted in July 2012 as part of a controversial decision of the federation.
It remains to be seen what type of punishment Mourinho will face, but reports suggest he could be looking at a four-game ban.
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