Minutes after becoming the first Turkish coach to register a Champions League point with the club, Ismail Kartal announced he was stepping down as Fenerbahce coach.
“It was a display of football befitting the Champions League,” Kartal said in his post-match press conference. “I would like to congratulate my players.”
One minute later, he was no longer their manager. “I have made this decision together with my coaching staff in order to open up a new path for Fenerbahce,” Kartal said.
Late into the evening, Fenerbahce president Aziz Yildirim issued an extraordinary statement on the club’s website. He laid into journalists and perceived traitors — and insisted that Kartal would continue as coach.
“Ismail Kartal doesn’t need to say, ‘I’ll carry on’,” said Yildirim. “I’m his senior. I said, ‘You’ll carry on’, and that’s that.”
@jacklang recaps the key talking points from Thursday's Champions League action: https://t.co/5E2cUl6hA0