Jose Mourinho appears to grab nose of rival coach after Turkish Cup loss

By Canadian Press on April 2, 2025.

Jose Mourinho appeared to pinch the nose of Galatasaray coach Okan Buruk after his Fenerbahce team was knocked out of the Turkish Cup on Wednesday.

In footage widely shared on social media, Mourinho appears to reach out at his opponent and make contact with his nose. Buruk then falls to the ground holding his face before Mourinho is escorted away.

Galatasaray won 2-1 in the quarterfinal match and posted a picture on its official X account of a smiling Buruk looking in Mourinho’s direction.

“YOU SHOULD NOT ATTACK, YOU SHOULD DIGEST!” was the message accompanying the picture along with a shushing emoji.

It is the latest controversial incident involving Mourinho, who was accused by Galatasaray in February of making racist comments after another match involving the Istanbul rivals. Galatasaray said the former Real Madrid, Manchester United and Chelsea manager had used “unequivocally inhumane rhetoric” after he referred to the opposition bench “jumping around like monkeys.”

Fenerbahce rejected the accusation and then said it had filed a lawsuit against Galatasaray for an “attack on the personal rights” of Mourinho.

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James Robson is at https://twitter.com/jamesalanrobson

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

James Robson, The Associated Press

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