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“Rangers were only LUCKY to Outscored us because the two star players in their midst, they are Too DANGEROUS to deal with and too PRAGMATIC”- Jose Mourinho names two more Rangers stars who undid Fenerbahce after praising Jack Butland
Jose Mourinho had little to complain about after Fenerbahce suffered a surprising 3-1 defeat at home to Rangers in the first leg of their Europa League last-16 clash in Istanbul.
While the former Real Madrid, Manchester United, and Chelsea manager was frustrated with Jack Butland’s time-wasting tactics — particularly with proposed rule changes limiting goalkeepers to just eight seconds with the ball — his post-match comments were honest and lacked any bitterness.
Rangers put in a solid performance, deserving their commanding win. Cyriel Dessers opened the scoring early with his 22nd goal of the season, while Vaclav Cerny added a brace to put Barry Ferguson’s side firmly in control, even after Alexander Djiku had leveled the scores for Fenerbahce in the first half.
Mourinho acknowledged Butland’s ‘fantastic’ performance between the sticks.
The England international had come under heavy scrutiny after a costly error in the 2-1 defeat to Motherwell on Saturday, but he impressed in Istanbul with several crucial saves, reminding everyone of his quality on the European stage.
At the other end, Dessers spearheaded the attack superbly, with only two tight offside calls preventing him from securing a memorable hat-trick.
Cerny, who now has 17 goals for the season, was also a standout performer.
Ferguson’s tactical switch to a 3-5-2 formation worked wonders, and Mourinho was full of praise for the impact it had on the game.
The Rangers boss set up with five defenders, three midfielders, and two forwards, focusing on a counter-attacking strategy that kept Fenerbahce on the back foot.
“They were pragmatic, defensive, and attacked the spaces in behind us. Every time, Cerny was looking for spaces behind our defenders,” Mourinho explained.
“I don’t know how close they were to being offside, but they always attacked the space. They were dangerous on the counter, competitive, and they deserved the victory.”
Despite the defeat, Mourinho didn’t hold back from acknowledging his side’s shortcomings, particularly in defence. “We were bad everywhere. It’s not fair to just say we were bad defensively — we were bad all over the pitch,” he said.
“Maybe you’ll laugh, but for me, this result is actually a good one. Given how we performed, it could have been worse.”
Mourinho continued, “Jack Butland made three fantastic saves. We had chances to score but didn’t take them. The midfield dynamic wasn’t good, and defensively we made huge mistakes.
We never controlled the game. Rangers defended with a low block and hit dangerous counter-attacks. So, we deserve the punishment of this result.”
