‘I wouldn’t be here if I knew’ – Mourinho pans referees

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Jose Mourinho criticized the refereeing standards in Turkey after his Fenerbahce team secured a dramatic 102nd-minute winner against Trabzonspor.

The former Chelsea, Manchester United, and Tottenham manager ran onto the pitch and attempted a knee slide following Sofyan Amrabat’s late goal, which sealed a 3-2 victory on Sunday.

However, Mourinho was frustrated by the two penalties awarded to the home team, Trabzonspor, both of which came after consultations with the video assistant referee (VAR). He also believed his team should have received a penalty before Amrabat’s late goal.

The 61-year-old even questioned his decision to come to Turkey.

In an interview with broadcaster beIN Sports, Mourinho openly criticized the performance of referee Oguzhan Cakir and VAR official Atilla Karaoglan.

“I blame the Fenerbahce people that brought me here,” said Mourinho, who took over at the club in June. “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 and my boys, we fight opponents and the system.”

Mourinho added: “He [Karaoglan] was alert to give the two penalty decisions which the referee didn’t give and then he was having Turkish tea when it was a clear penalty for us and he didn’t give it.”

Fenerbahce moved to second in the Turkish top flight, five points behind leaders Galatasaray, after their win.

“The man of the match was Atilla Karaoglan,” added Mourinho.

“We didn’t see him but he was the referee. The referee was just a little boy that was there on the pitch, but the referee was Atilla Karaoglan.

“He goes from the invisible man to the most important man in the match.

“I think I am speaking on behalf of every Fenerbahce fan – we don’t want him again.

“We don’t want him as a VAR. We don’t want him on the pitch but, on the VAR, even less.”

Trabzonspor head coach Senol Gunes dismissed Mourinho’s comments.

“I don’t need to talk about them,” he said. “What happened? Penalty or not? A goal scored? Isn’t it a goal? Many things can be talked about. I stay away from them anyway.

“I think that where there is all that shouting, the decisions are against Trabzonspor, not in its favour.”

Last season, Turkish football experienced several controversial incidents involving officials, including the Turkish Football Federation (TFF) suspending all leagues after referee Halil Umut Meler was punched by a club president on the pitch following a match.

In a separate incident, the president of Istanbulspor pulled his team off the pitch in protest over a refereeing decision during their match against Trabzonspor.