Mourinho important in me choosing ‘Türkiye’s biggest club’ Fenerbahçe – Semedo | OneFootball

Nélson Semedo is the latest recruit by José Mourinho’s Fenerbahçe, and the experienced full-back says the legendary Portuguese boss was a factor in rejecting a host of offers to move to Istanbul.

Semedo signed a two-year deal with Fenerbahce at the end of last month on a free transfer, having left Wolverhampton Wanderers following the expiration of his contract after five years at Molineux.

Speaking to Fenerbahçe Television over the weekend, Semedo admitted he could have stayed in the Premier League, while there were also links with clubs in Italy. Semedo, who captained Wolves last season, left the club a month ago, but took his time in assessing options before deciding on a destination.

"My first days here were quite good," Semedo said. “My teammates welcomed me very warmly. Of course, when you do that, it makes your adaptation easier. I had already spoken to some people I knew before coming here. One of them is our conditioning coach, Antonio. I knew him from before.

“I also knew Talisca. I spoke to them before I arrived, but not only them, but all my teammates welcomed me very warmly. I went to my first team training session the other day and felt very good. I felt like I'd been here for a long time, not like I'd just arrived.

“When I spoke with Talisca, it was already certain that I would be coming here. I hadn't spoken to him beforehand. But I knew Fenerbahçe very well before coming here. This is Türkiye's biggest club. It was also very nice and important for me to have a manager like Mourinho, a Portuguese coach who is a significant figure in world football, here.

“There were other opportunities, but I told my agent that I wanted to come to Fenerbahçe, that I wanted to fight for the championship, and that I wanted to play for a team that was chasing championships. I think I'm in the right place for that right now. There was an offer from England, and other offers, but I declined. It's difficult for most players to refuse an offer like that from the Premier League, but I wanted to come here. Of all my options, Fenerbahçe was the best for me.

"I know our fans very well. Of course, I've never played in front of them in that stadium before, but I know how passionate, how dedicated, and how much of a driving force they are for the team. I hope they continue this way, because we need them more than ever this season. I believe we can achieve great things together.”

Fenerbahçe have a huge game on Wednesday, with Mourinho’s men headed to the Netherlands to play Feyenoord in the first leg of their Champions League Third qualifying round tie.