Bruno Lage on Akturkoglu row ahead of Benfica v Fenerbahçe: Special | OneFootball

Benfica is preparing for the second leg of the Champions League qualifying play-off, played at home against Fenerbahçe. In the preview of the match, scheduled for 8:00 PM at Estádio da Luz, Bruno Lage addressed his relationship with Kerem Akturkoglu, after the conflict between the two during the match against Tondela.

"I have a good relationship with all the players. Akturkoglu is a special player. Our fans don’t know him as a person, only as a player," Bruno Lage began, when asked about his relationship with the Turkish international.

The Eagles’ coach also recalled the lighthearted moment involving the Turkish press, himself, and Akturkoglu, highlighting his player’s happiness: "The Turkish journalists came onto the pitch and waved. I found that moment amusing."

Continuing, Bruno Lage emphasized the way Kerem Akturkoglu entered the field against Tondela, thus downplaying the episode that supposedly left the Turk unhappy: "Did you see the images of Akturkoglu as he was coming onto the pitch? Smiling? That’s it. He came onto the field, smiling, to help the team. He didn’t have a good performance and left disappointed."

Finally, the Benfica coach downplayed the striker’s frustration after the final whistle against Tondela, pointing out that it would only be serious if he was satisfied with a poor performance: "For me, it’s not an issue. It will be an issue when one of our players doesn’t contribute to the team and thinks everything is fine. That’s when I’ll be very concerned."

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