Mourinho Criticizes Kerem Aktürkoğlu After Benfica’s Champions League Loss
Mourinho Explains Why Benfica Couldn’t Retain Fenerbahçe’s Kerem Aktürkoğlu After Champions League Defeat
LISBON, Portugal – October 22, 2025 – Benfica coach Jose Mourinho addressed his team’s 3-0 loss to Newcastle united in the UEFA Champions League, and unexpectedly discussed former transfer target Kerem Aktürkoğlu, revealing the financial realities that prevented the Turkish international from joining the Portuguese club.
Following the defeat in the 3rd week of the Champions League group stage, Mourinho expressed disappointment with his team’s performance, stating, ”We fell short of scoring goals in the frist half…the result in the first half was extremely unfair.” He added that conceding the second goal significantly altered the match’s trajectory, leading to a psychological and physical collapse. “The team collapsed physically and mentally. What we couldn’t eat in the first half, we ate in the last 15-20 minutes.”
Despite acknowledging a potentially achievable points threshold for Champions League qualification – “I think between 9 and 11 points will be enough” – Mourinho emphasized the immediate need for recovery. “It doesn’t matter if we played well in the first half…The meaningful thing is that we lost 3-0.we need to recover.”
Turning to the subject of Kerem Aktürkoğlu, currently playing for Fenerbahçe, Mourinho revealed his admiration for the player but explained why Benfica were unable to secure his services. “There was a player I loved very much, but he is not here now,” he said. “Everything had to develop like this because of the path my previous club followed regarding Kerem. Benfica had no chance of stopping a player who could earn five times his salary.It was not a situation that Benfica could control.”