Fenerbahce's head coach, Ismail Kartal, announced his resignation after his side drew 1-1 at home with Roma in the Champions League on Thursday, only for club president Aziz Yildirim to declare minutes later that Kartal would remain in the role. The episode highlights the mounting pressure on Kartal, who has struggled to arrest a poor start to the season and cited a bottle thrown at him by a fan during the match as a factor in his distress, though the confusion leaves his position looking precarious regardless.

Kartal, 65, told the post-match press conference he was leaving "never to return" to "clear the way for the club", but Yildirim insisted afterwards that he had personally told the coach to continue, describing the club as "a family". Fenerbahce, who reached the Champions League group phase for the first time in 18 years, currently sit ninth in the Turkish Super Lig after losing two of their opening four league games, including a defeat to Besiktas. In Thursday's match, Roma led through Bryan Cristante before Archie Brown equalised, while a late Nathan Aké header struck the crossbar; Kartal's future remains uncertain ahead of upcoming fixtures against Aston Villa and Liverpool.