Didier Drogba has defended Jose Mourinho over accusations of racism from Galatasaray in a message addressed to his former club.
Galatasaray intend to take legal action against Mourinho, the Fenerbahce head coach, after he accused their bench of “jumping like monkeys” during a fractious match between the rivals in the Turkish league on Monday.
Tensions were high in the build-up over the referee appointment, with Slovenian official Slavko Vincic drafted in by the Turkish Football Federation. Mourinho welcomed this move as a vocal critic of officiating in Turkey.
Fenerbahce vice president Acun Ilicali accused Galatasaray of manipulating the situation in an appearance on Sky Sports News, while the club insist Mourinho’s words “can in no way be associated with racism”.
Didier Drogba has leapt to the defence of his former Chelsea boss
Drogba, coached by Mourinho at Chelsea over two spells, sought to intervene in the dispute on Thursday, as he wrote a message directly to supporters of Galatasaray – the club he played for in 2013/14.
“I’ve seen the recent comments about Jose Mourinho,” Drogba wrote in a post on social media.
“Trust me when I tell you I have known Jose for 25 years and he is not a racist and history (past and recent) is there to prove it. How can my ‘Dad’ be a racist? Come on guys.”
He added: “You know how proud I was to wear the yellow and red jersey and my love for the most decorated club in Turkey! We all know how passionate and heated rivalries can be, and I’ve been lucky enough to experience it.”
Drogba’s ex-Chelsea team-mate Michael Essien, also brought to Stamford Bridge during Mourinho’s time, shared an image of him and his former boss on Thursday in an apparent show of support.
Essien also shared an old video of Mourinho saying he considers himself a father figure to the former Ghana midfielder.
Essien and Mourinho at a news conference to unveil the midfielder as a new Chelsea signing in 2005
What are the accusations from Galatasaray?
Galatasaray say Mourinho has “persistently” made derogatory comments towards Turkish people since becoming Fenerbahce boss and claim his latest comments have escalated into “unequivocally inhumane rhetoric”.
A statement from Galatasaray read: “Since the commencement of his managerial duties in Turkey, Fenerbahce manager Jose Mourinho has persistently issued derogatory statements directed towards the Turkish people.
“Today, his discourse has escalated beyond merely immoral comments into unequivocally inhumane rhetoric.
“We hereby formally declare our intention to initiate criminal proceedings concerning the racist statements made by Jose Mourinho, and shall accordingly submit official complaints to UEFA and FIFA. Furthermore, we shall diligently observe the stance adopted by Fenerbahce – an institution professing to uphold ‘exemplary moral values’ – in response to the reprehensible conduct exhibited by their manager.”
What did Mourinho say after the game?
Mourinho said in his post-match press conference: “I went to the referee’s dressing room after the game. The fourth official was there – a Turkish referee – I told him if you are the referee it would be a disaster.
“If they’re [Galatasaray] really, really good, if they want to be an example of ‘we are good, we are strong, we are the champions, we want to show how good we are’, they should ask for foreign referees every match.
“But when the referees are foreign, UEFA Cup – go home, against us at home – one shot on target. But if they are good and they believe really in themselves and in their power, they should ask the federation.
“We thank the referee because after the big dive in the first minute and their bench jumping like monkeys on the top of the kid, with a Turkish referee, the kid would have a yellow card after one minute and after five minutes I would have to change. Thankfully it was a perfect experience for him.”
Vincic showed seven yellow cards during the match and had to temporarily suspend the game after flares were thrown in the stands.
How did Fenerbahce respond?
Fenerbahce released their statement on Tuesday, where the club accused Galatasaray of being “malicious” with their intent to portray Mourinho as racist.
“This statement has become necessary regarding a topic that has been on the agenda after the match played between our football team and Galatasaray,” the statement read.
“A statement made by our technical director Jose Mourinho after the match was completely taken out of context and an attempt was made to deliberately distort it.
“As every sensible person can see and understand; these statements used by Jose Mourinho to describe the excessive reaction of the opposing team’s technical staff to the referee decisions during the match can in no way be associated with racism.
“Trying to portray this statement as racist is a completely malicious approach.
“We would like to inform the public that we will use our legal rights regarding this pathetic slander that was made in order to take the competition off the field, change the agenda and manipulate it.”