Another high-profile Portuguese manager is back on the market after Turkish giants Fenerbahce fired Vítor Pereira less than six months into his tenure in Istanbul.
Pereira leaves with the team in 5th place in the Super Lig, having suffered a decline in results following a good start to the domestic campaign. Fenerbahce are currently a considerable 14 points behind leaders Trabzonspor, with just two victories in their last nine outings in Turkey’s top flight.
Former Porto boss Pereira returned to Fener for a second time in July, signing a two-year deal with the club he previously coached during the 2015-16 season. A strong start saw Pereira’s side top of the league after eight matches in early October, but since then a decline in results as well as relations with key players appears to have cost the 53-year-old.
Since this press conference, Fenerbahce won two matches out of nine, slipped to 5th place and 14 points behind 1st place, leading to Pereira losing his job. Things change quickly. https://t.co/SG1u6HuUMV
— Sean Gillen (@SeanGillen9) December 21, 2021
Sunday’s 2-2 draw at home with local rivals Besiktas saw Fener twice give up leading positions in the game and proved the final outing of Pereira’s reign. After the match, fans made their displeasure known and the Portuguese boss was forced to comment on unrest and scuffles between sections of the club’s supporters amid criticism of Pereira and the president.
“I find the reactions of the fans normal,” Pereira said. “Like us, they wanted our team to win. We worked hard on the field today, but we couldn't get the result we wanted. Therefore, I find this reaction of our supporters natural, but our president does not deserve these reactions. He gives his all for the club. He always supports the team, the players and the coach, but unfortunately that's how football is.
“My players also fought a lot today. We wanted to win like our fans. Me, our players, our president, our fans, we all wanted to win. But that's football, sometimes things don't turn out the way you want them to. We need to keep working. We need to be united. If we split, we gain nothing. We must keep fighting and believing. We need to be better. If we fight like we fought today, we will definitely make up for the points we lost.”
However, Fenerbahce announced on Monday evening that Pereira would leave the club, as had been rumoured before the derby. He leaves with a record of 25 matches; 11 victories; 7 draws; 7 defeats. He becomes the second prominent Portuguese boss to lose his job in less than a week, with Rui Vitoria sacked by Russians Spartak Moscow last Wednesday.
By Sean Gillen
