Sports
Mourinho tells critics not to ‘jump off balconies’ after Trubin Champions League goal
Jose Mourinho has told Benfica’s critics to show “respect” and admitted that at one point he had “no idea” whether his side required the last-gasp goal they scored to reach the Champions League knockout phase play-offs with a win over Real Madrid.
Mourinho’s new side were set to go out of the competition on goals scored on the final night of the league phase before goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin headed the crucial 98th-minute goal as the Portuguese club beat the 15-time European champions 4-2 at home.
Trubin GOALKEEPER GOAL 🤯
Astonishing Dragomir strike 😮
Left-footed shot João Pedro 😎
Sublime Dimarco free-kick 🎯#UCLGOTD | @Heineken pic.twitter.com/uqXTxOfOcW— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) January 28, 2026
“The only thing I’d like this victory to bring is a little bit of respect,” said Mourinho (via A Bola), who returned in September to the club where he first became a manager.
“I appeal to many of these people not to… jump off balconies. Calm down. Benfica will lose and they will kill us again. The only thing I’d like is a little bit of respect for Benfica and for the players.”
Benfica vs Madrid: Trubin Champions League heroics
Mourinho has won the Champions League with Porto and Inter but was sacked by Fenerbahce earlier this season after they lost to Benfica in qualifying to reach the league phase.
Trubin’s goal sent them to a play-off tie against Madrid or Inter to reach the round of 16, with their opponents decided by a draw on Friday.
“When I brought on [Franjo] Ivanovic and Antonio [Silva in the 93rd minute], I had no idea if 3-2 was enough,” conceded Mourinho.
The Trubin Show 😲🤯😱🫢#UCL pic.twitter.com/HGpdqNm2Rc
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) January 28, 2026
“I had no indication. They came on to secure the victory. When we realised it wasn’t enough, I sent [defender] Nico [Otamendi ] to play up front.
“I couldn’t make any more substitutions. When the foul came [to give us an opportunity], I sent Trubin forward. [Samuel] Dahl stayed in midfield… the little guy stayed back because winning was always important.”
Mourinho: Champions League win vs Real Madrid ‘historic’
Mourinho led Madrid between 2010 and 2013 and is now on the brink of another meeting with the team currently managed by Alvaro Arbeloa following Xabi Alonso’s sacking earlier this month.
“Winning against Real Madrid always has significant weight,” said the 63-year-old. “This victory is historic. It’s important from an economic point of view and even more so from a prestige point of view.
“I remember winning or losing in the last minute, which has had happened to me several times. But this [was a] situation where you’re winning, it’s not enough, then you think it is and it isn’t.
“You have to change things and take risks because, in the end, this [situation] could have [ended in] it [being] 3-3 and we would still have been eliminated.”
When is the Champions League knockout phase?
- Knockout phase play-offs: February 17/18 & 24/25 2026
- Round of 16: March 10/11 & 17/18 2026
- Quarter-finals: April 7/8 & 14/15 2026
- Semi-finals: April 28/29 and May 5/6 2026
- Final: May 30 2026 (Budapest)
When are the Champions League draws?
- Knockout phase play-offs: January 30 2026
- Round of 16, quarter-final, semi-final and final: February 27 2026
When is the Champions League final?
The final will take place on May 30 2026 at the The Puskas Arena in Budapest, which opened in 2019 and is home to Hungary’s national team.
The arena hosted a dramatic 2022/23 Europa League final, when Sevilla beat Roma on penalties following a 1-1 draw after extra time.
Why did Fenerbahce sack Jose Mourinho?
After finishing 11 points behind champions Galatasaray in second in Mourinho’s first campaign in Turkiye, Fenerbahce started this season with a 0-0 draw at Goztepe, who won promotion in 2023/24 and came eighth last season.
They overturned a 2-1 first-leg deficit to beat Feyenoord in their first Champions League qualifying tie courtesy of a 5-2 win at home, but the immediacy of Mourinho’s departure suggested their defeat to Benfica in the next round decided his fate.
Turkiye winger Kerem Akturkoglu, who joined Benfica from Galatasaray in 2024, scored the decisive goal in the 35th minute of the return leg, consigning Fenerbahce the Europa League.
In between their contests with Benfica, Fenerbahce secured their first league win of the season by beating Kocaelispor 3-1 at home, although the promoted visitors had lost their first two games without scoring.
Mourinho finished with a record of 37 victories, 14 draws and 11 defeats in 62 matches with Fenerbahce, achieving a win percentage of just under 60.
Jose Mourinho stats, Fenerbahce record
A 118th-minute second-leg goal by visitors Lille knocked Fenerbahce out of Champions League qualifying in Mourinho’s first season and they were the last team to qualify for the Europa League knockout phase play-offs, advancing on goal difference in 18th after winning two of their eight league phase matches.
A 5-2 win over Andelecht took them to the last 16 but a 3-1 home defeat to Rangers then proved costly as they were knocked out at Ibrox on penalties following a 2-0 away win.
Fenerbahce were unbeaten in their first five league matches under Mourinho but then lost 3-1 to Galatasaray in front of their largest home crowd of the season of more than 44,000 fans.
Galatasaray also knocked Fenerbahce out of the Turkish Cup as the visiting side in a quarter-final featuring two red cards on either side during added time.
Mourinho frequently criticised refereeing in Turkiye and received a four-match ban – later reduced to two games – for remarks about referees after a 0-0 draw at Galatasaray on February 24.
In a separate incident, Galatasaray said they would “initiate criminal proceedings” against Mourinho and accused him of making “racist statements”.
He denied the allegations, describing himself as the “opposite” of racist and filing a lawsuit against the club seeking damages worth around £41,000.
Jose Mourinho contract
Mourinho’s deal at Fenerbahce was worth more than £8m a year, according to ESPN at the time of his appointment.
Club president Ali Y Koc called Mourinho a living legend and one of the five best managers alive when he arrived and said their first goal was to become Turkish champions.
“I want to thank you all for your love,” Mourinho responded. “I’ve felt it since the first time my name was linked with Fenerbahce.”
Jose Mourinho trophies
An eight-time top-flight champion across Portugal, England, Spain and Italy, Mourinho won the Champions League at Porto in 2003/04 and Inter in 2009/10.
He was a Premier League champion with Chelsea in 2004/05 and 2005/06, returning to triumph again in 2014/15 during his second spell at the helm.
Mourinho’s two most recent glories were the 2016/17 Europa League title with Manchester United and the 2021/22 inaugural Conference League trophy with Roma.
