Mourinho was appointed coach of the Turkish giants in June and after a difficult start to the season, that saw them dumped out of the Champions League qualifiers by Lille and beaten twice in the league, Fenerbahce, had found some impressive form to close the gap on leaders Galatasaray.
But they came unstuck against fourth-placed Besiktas, who hadn’t won in five games, when Oxlade-Chamberlain settled the derby with a goal in the 73rd minute. It was his first of the campaign and left Mourinho raging with both the officials and the result.
Speaking afterwards, he said: “We deserved at least a draw. The match was under our control, but we couldn’t finish it. I congratulate the referee and Besiktas. The worst team won. Although we weren’t perfect, I think we were better, but they took advantage of their only chance. We will continue to fight for the championship.”
It’s not the first time Mourinho has taken aim at officiating in Turkey, with the former Chelsea and Manchester United boss launchging into an extraordinary rant about referees earlier this season after a win over Trabzonspor.
He said: “Today, the man of the match was [VAR referee] Atilla Karaoglan. We didn’t see him, but he was the referee of the match. The referee was just a little boy who was there on the pitch, but the referee was Atilla Karaoglan. He went from the invisible man to the most important man of the match. I speak on behalf of all Fenerbahce fans: we don’t want him again. We don’t want him because it smells bad. We don’t want him. We don’t want him on the pitch, but on the VAR even less.
“I know what I was told, even before I came. I didn’t believe. It’s even worse than I was told. But I prefer to be on this side. It’s more difficult. It’s more difficult because we play against good opponents like Trabzonspor is: good opponent with lots of good players and a historical coach. But we play against a system. And to play against a system is the most difficult thing.
“Tonight we play against a good team, against a strong atmosphere, against VAR, and against a system. So very hard. That’s why we celebrated this victory so much. It’s unbelievable to win this match against so many powerful people. We are not going to give up. We know what we have. I blame the Fenerbahce people that brought me here! They told me only half of the truth. They didn’t tell me the whole truth, because if they told me the whole truth I wouldn’t come! But with half of the truth, with my boys we fight the opponent, we fight the system.”
Oxlade-Chamberlain, meanwhile, has scored five times in 34 games since moving to Besiktas in 2023. He posted on Instragram: “Derby day delight! Glad I could contribute with a goal! We have to build from here.”
