Solskjaer’s Besiktas have struggled in April to start league games, or to hold all the way to the end of the game without conceding the game-deciding back-to-back. Last week, it all came off with a 5-1 win, perfectly timed for Sunday’s city derby against Fenerbahce and Jose Mourinho himself.
This meeting between the two coaches is so much more than about ninety minutes. Into the match, the two former Manchester United coaches bring all of their history with them. It was Mourinho who lashed out at a useless United squad before he was sacked, it was Solskjaer who saved the season with the same “useless bunch of players”.
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In Süper Lig, it was finally time for focused Norwegian energy to once again meet an agitated sea of Portuguese emotions. Mourinho needed three points to threaten Galatasaray in the title race, Solskjaer needed three points to reach his goal of third place in the Süper Lig.
It was boiling in the stadium and on the grass at Fenerbahce. Mourinho had to see two penalty situations swept away after a review by VAR, Besiktas had to see a penalty go away without scoring.
Before the game, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer responded to a question from the BBC about the big game against Mourinho: “The margins between winning and losing in football are extremely small. Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good. Hopefully this will be one of José’s bad nights,” Solskjaer replied.
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A goal by Gedson a minute before half-time was all it took for Besiktas. It ended with a 0-1 win for Solskjaer’s men, for Mourinho it was exactly the “bad night” Solskjaer had planned for The Special One.
