Mourinho speaks on Akturkoglu before Benfica clash: "If he plays..." | OneFootball

José Mourinho took the opportunity during his conversation with journalists to address the topic of Kerem Akturkoglu. The Benfica winger has been persistently linked with Fenerbahçe and, before the two clubs face each other on the night of Wednesday, August 20, the Portuguese coach spoke about the matter in a pre-match press conference ahead of the Champions League play-off.

"If he plays tomorrow, he plays for Benfica. And if he plays in Lisbon next week, he plays for Benfica. So, for me, it makes absolutely no sense to think of Kerem as a Fenerbahçe player, because he isn’t. I have to think of him as the Benfica player that he is, and with the possibility that he might play against us," he began to explain, not wanting to give too much away.

José Mourinho continued, recalling the Eusébio Cup match (3-2 to Benfica): "I changed, Bruno changed, lots of substitutions, little focus on the result itself. We wanted to try things out, give shape to the players. I don’t think there’s any conclusion to be drawn from that game. I’m much more focused on the league match and the two games against Nice than on that match at Luz."

José Mourinho is playing, against Benfica, for his first qualification to the main draw of the Champions League in more than five years. The Portuguese coach hasn’t competed in the prestigious tournament since 2019/20, when he was managing Tottenham and was eliminated in the round of 16. Before ending the press conference, he recalled the times when he coached in Portugal.

"I always beat Benfica because my teams were better than Benfica. My FC Porto was much better than Benfica, my Manchester United was better than Benfica, my UD Leiria at that time... wasn’t as good as Benfica... well, maybe it was better than Benfica, and that’s why my teams often beat Benfica," José Mourinho concluded.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.