Trabzon: Fatih Teke, the manager of Turkish club Trabzonspor, announced his resignation following a heavy 4-0 defeat to Hungarian side Ferencv¡ros in the second leg of the Europa League playoffs. Trabzonspor were eliminated from the continental competition after losing 5-0 on aggregate, dropping down to the Europa League, while Ferencv¡ros advanced to the main Europa League group stage.

According to National Iraqi News Agency, in a post-match television interview, Teke said his team had been performing well until one of his players was sent off, before taking responsibility for the elimination and announcing his resignation. He added, “My coaching staff and I have worked tirelessly for 18 months, day and night, to achieve the best possible results. The team will be much better, that’s for sure, but I won’t dwell on it.”

He continued, “As of now, I am resigning from my position after 18 months, and I believe I have the right to punish myself in this way.” The Turkish coach confirmed that his decision came as a surprise even to the club’s management, saying, “I didn’t inform the management of my resignation. I’m saying it for the first time on television; no one knows.”

Teke explained that some matches leave a significant impact on coaches and players. He added, “There are matches that hurt deeply, and we experienced one of them today… Unfortunately, I am resigning from a position that was a great honor for me to hold.” Teke emphasized that he takes responsibility for the defeat, saying, “I always tell my players that defeats are my responsibility and victories are theirs, and therefore, today’s result is unacceptable to me.”

He concluded by saying, “Bad luck can happen, and many things can be accepted in football, but I cannot accept this result, and I haven’t been able to sleep after what happened… I ask everyone to forgive me. We did our best, but some matches are incredibly painful.” Trabzonspor, the team for which Mohamed Salah currently plays, lost last night’s match against the Hungarian team 4-0 after two of their players were sent off.