Tedesco: Fenerbahçe axing came after contract renewal talks

Domenico Tedesco has admitted he was taken by surprise when he was sacked as Fenerbahçe coach in the wake of a Süper Lig table topper defeat against Istanbul rivals Galatasaray.

>"We had just been discussing an early contract renewal. Now we are going separate ways after the second season defeat," Tedesco told dpa on Tuesday.

>"This shows once again just how fast-paced football has become. When I started, the aim was to build something together that would also be sustainable. We wanted to approach things a little differently together than might have been the norm in the past.”

>Fenerbahçe lost Sunday's derby 3-0 which leaves them seven points behind leaders Galatasaray. Their last of 19 league titles was in 2014 and they were runners-up the past four seasons.

>The club parted ways with Tedesco, sporting director Devin Özek and football coordinator Berke Çelebi on Monday.

>German-Italian Tedesco succeeded José Mourinho in September at Fenerbahçe on a contract until 2027 and coached them in 45 matches across all competitions.

>He was previously in charge of Schalke, RB Leipzig, Spartak Moscow and the Belgian national team.