Mohamed Salah’s Trabzonspor future in Europe hit by dramatic Fatih Tekke resignation row

Trabzonspor manager Fatih Tekke announced his resignation live on Turkish television after his side’s heavy Europa League qualifying defeat by Ferencvaros, but the club has rejected his decision and insists he will remain in charge.

Trabzonspor were beaten 4-0 by Ferencvaros in the second leg on Thursday, going out 5-0 on aggregate and ending their hopes of reaching the Europa League proper. The result came during a difficult start to a season in which the club had invested heavily in an attempt to challenge for the Turkish title.

Mohamed Salah, Fabinho and Ruslan Malinovskyi were among 14 new arrivals at Trabzonspor during the summer. However, the team began their league campaign with a 1-1 draw against Kasımpasa before suffering a decisive European exit.

Tekke revealed his intention to leave during a live interview with Turkish broadcaster A Spor shortly after the defeat. The 48-year-old said his resignation would take effect immediately, despite having not yet spoken to the club’s directors.

“I’ll keep it short. Nobody knows about this. I am resigning with immediate effect after holding this position for 18 months. I have the right to impose this punishment on myself. From today, I am leaving. I have not yet informed the management of my resignation. I am saying it for the first time on television.”

The former Turkey international also described the defeat as one that would stay with him, making clear that he believed the performance was beyond what could be explained by bad luck.

“There are matches that leave a deep mark on you. We have just experienced one. Today’s defeat, Thursday’s defeat, is unacceptable. You can accept bad luck, but not this. I will not be able to sleep like this. I hope everyone will forgive me.”

However, Trabzonspor issued a statement during the night saying Tekke’s resignation had been made in the immediate emotional aftermath of the European loss and had not been accepted.

“Our coach, Fatih Tekke, decided to resign under the emotional pressure caused by the defeat against Ferencvaros. The Trabzonspor board rejected his resignation request. Tekke remains in charge and will lead our team in the next league match against Amedspor.”

That match is scheduled for Monday at 18:30 local time. Trabzonspor will therefore begin preparations with Tekke still officially in charge, despite his televised announcement that he had decided to step down after 18 months in the role.

The club’s European campaign is not necessarily over, although their Europa League route has ended. The draw for the UEFA Conference League takes place on Friday afternoon, with Trabzonspor awaiting further details about their potential involvement in that competition.