The events of the last few hours at Fenerbahçe have been worthy of the most convoluted plotline in a Turkish TV series, after the Turkish side’s manager, İsmail Kartal, reversed the resignation he had announced last night, following Thursday’s match against Roma in Istanbul, after holding a last-minute meeting with the club’s president, Aziz Yıldırım.
Numerous Turkish newspapers reported on Friday that Fenerbahçe had accepted the surprise resignation announced last night by manager İsmail Kartal after attempts to persuade him to remain in charge of the team had failed in the last few hours. The manager unexpectedly announced his decision following the draw against Roma in the club’s first Champions League match, and had since stood firm in his stance despite talks held today with the team’s technical director, Oğuz Çetin.
Fenerbahçe drew 1–1 with Roma yesterday in their Champions League opener. In the match played in Kadıköy (Istanbul), the Italian side took the lead in the first half with a goal from Cristante. However, Archie Brown equalised early in the second half, allowing Fenerbahçe to secure their first point in the competition.
Kartal unexpectedly announces his resignation after the match
After the match, whilst Fenerbahçe’s strong performance against Roma was being highlighted, İsmail Kartal appeared before the cameras at the press conference, as is customary; however, on this occasion he did so to make a completely unexpected announcement, as reported by the well-known Turkish newspaper Hürriyet.
Stating that he would not answer questions from journalists, the manager unexpectedly announced his departure from the club: “I’ve been here for three months. From the start of the season until today, the training sessions and team retreats we’ve held with the players, our chairman and the board have all been aimed at helping us. They were very good days. As of tonight, I congratulate my players and resign from my post”.
“I’d like to thank our fans, the media, the staff and my fellow players who have supported me until today. Tonight I have resigned from my post. I have taken this decision to pave the way for my club. We have taken this decision together as a team. From now on, to help Fenerbahçe, my players and future managers, I have resigned from my post whilst there is still time, with the intention of never returning”, he added emphatically.
Players and club officials left baffled
The 65-year-old coach, who had returned to the club last June after first taking charge in 2014 and then again between 2021 and 2024, had already been the subject of some criticism following a Süper Lig defeat to Gençlerbirliği on the opening day, and after Fenerbahçe lost at home last week in the first derby of the season against Beşiktaş.
Kartal’s resignation, however, caused enormous consternation, to the extent that – contrary to what his words suggested – neither the players nor the club officials were aware of his decision. So much so that Archie Brown, who scored Fenerbahçe’s goal, was completely baffled when, during a post-match interview, journalists broke the news to him: “Resignation? What resignation?”, exclaimed the footballer, making his disbelief clear.
Aziz Yildirim came to Kartal’s defence
Shortly after these events, the Fenerbahçe chairman, Aziz Yıldırım, once again gave a new twist to events and surprised everyone by appearing before the cameras and publicly stating that the manager remained in charge of the team, defending İsmail Kartal’s role.
“They threw water bottles at İsmail’s head. We saw it and he saw it too. That’s why he’s upset. That’s the reason. Our team played well. We picked up a point,” explained the club president, emphasising that Fenerbahçe’s return to the Champions League after an 18-year absence deserved recognition. “İsmail Kartal remains in his post. This community must support İsmail Kartal,” he added.
To add to the surreal nature of the situation, whilst Aziz Yıldırım was making these statements, Kartal and his coaching staff walked out the door right past Yıldırım and left the stadium.
Subsequently, Fenerbahçe publicly announced that the fan who threw a bottle at İsmail Kartal during the Champions League match against Roma had been sanctioned with a ban on attending matches “under Law 6222 on the Prevention of Violence and Disorder in Sport”.
Fenerbahce accepted Kartal’s departure
Despite Yıldırım’s statements, the fact is that İsmail Kartal was not present at Fenerbahçe’s training session, which began this Friday at 12:00. A few hours later, the club officially announced that the team and the manager had terminated their contractual relationship after Kartal had formally submitted his resignation, which was accepted by the club.
Before making the final decision on his resignation, Fenerbahçe’s technical director, Oğuz Çetin, and Cihan Kamer, a member of the club’s board of directors, held a meeting with İsmail Kartal to try to convince him to remain in his post, but they were unable to change his mind.
Yildirim steps in and persuades Ismail Kartal to stay on
The Turkish press reported that the assistant manager, Dirk Kuyt, would take temporary charge of the team for the league match to be played next Monday in Gaziantep.
However, there was still one more chapter to go before reaching the final outcome of this intricate story. After İsmail Kartal unexpectedly tendered his resignation, Aziz Yıldırım refused to accept it, pointing out that the Turkish manager had not received enough support.
“İsmail Kartal remains in his post. This club must support İsmail Kartal. You can’t support someone by throwing a bottle at their head. He told me himself about that incident where a bottle was thrown at him. He spoke to me about the pressure. İsmail Kartal is like our son. I don’t need to tell him he’s going to carry on. I told him: ‘You’re going to carry on’, and that’s that. I’m his boss. We’re a family. There’s no problem on our part,” declared the club president, as quoted by the Turkish media.
Apparently, after today’s meeting between Oğuz Çetin and Kartal failed to yield positive results, Yıldırım intervened personally and met face to face with İsmail Kartal to reiterate his support and make it clear that he would not accept his resignation. Following this meeting with Aziz Yıldırım, İsmail Kartal withdrew his resignation in light of the explicit backing he received from the president and the Fenerbahçe board.
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Edited and reviewed by:
Pablo Gómez is a specialist in Turkey and has been editor-in-chief of Hispanatolia since 2011. He has been analysing current affairs and geopolitics in Turkey and the surrounding region since 2006.
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