Mourinho: The Champions League Always Means Something Special to Me – We’ll Be a Big Problem for Lille

Fenerbahçe will face Lille from the French Ligue 1 in the third round of the Champions League qualifiers. Ahead of the match, Fenerbahçe’s head coach, José Mourinho, attended a press conference where he addressed questions regarding team injuries, prospects for advancing, and season objectives.

In the second-round qualifier against Lugano, Fenerbahçe’s Brazilian midfielder Fred was forced off due to injury. Mourinho believes his team has the capability to overcome the impact of injuries. He said, “No problem, we’re in very good shape. Currently, we only have one injured player, Fred, and that’s after 40 training sessions and seven matches. This is my second time participating in the Champions League qualifiers, but it’s my first time doing so during a season with a European Championship and international matches, which doubles the difficulty of preparations because the players are not all at the same level. Some are still basking in the excitement of the European Championship, while others haven’t hit their stride yet. We won’t make excuses; instead, we’re solely focused on the next match. We want to participate in the Champions League group stage and win the Süper Lig title.”

Regarding their opponents, Lille, Mourinho showed no signs of intimidation, instead displaying his usual confidence. He said, “I hope to win, although it will be tough because Lille play well. I watched their friendly matches against Wolfsburg and Celta Vigo; they’re excellent, with a strong coach and many good players beyond David. In short, they’re a tough team to beat, but for them, we’ll also be difficult to handle.”

Has Fenerbahçe, who invested heavily this summer, given any instructions to the coach and players that reaching the Champions League group stage is mandatory? To this, Mourinho replied, “The club never told me that participating in the Champions League is a must, but I believe that for the prestige of the club, for Turkish football, and for the future of the players, it’s good to be in the group stage. If you ask me if Fenerbahçe can win the Champions League, I’d say anything is possible, but I don’t believe in miracles. We have the ability to win the Europa League, but I prefer the Champions League. We’ve been drawn into a tough position and need to fight together as a team, but let’s not make it like the France vs. Argentina match in the Olympics.”