Jose Mourinho humbled as Portuguese powerhouse chases Fenerbahce out of Champions League

Jose Mourinho’s Fenerbahce were sent crashing out of the UEFA Champions League following a humbling defeat at the hands of Portuguese powerhouse Benfica in a crucial encounter.

The Portuguese giants secured their place in the Champions League group stage with a narrow 1-0 victory at their home ground in Lisbon on Wednesday night.

The decisive moment came in the 35th minute when Kerem Akturkoglu expertly finished a precise cross from Leandro Barreiro, curling his shot high into the net to give Benfica the lead.

Fenerbahce pushed hard to find an equaliser, coming closest just under 20 minutes from time.

Moroccan striker Youssef En-Nesyri’s looping header rattled the crossbar, denying the visitors and Mourinho, who could have some Super Eagles players under his wings, a lifeline.

The pressure intensified late on as Fenerbahce were reduced to ten men, after former Benfica forward Talisca was shown a second yellow card.

With this win, Benfica have confirmed their spot in the Champions League proper for the 15th time in 16 seasons, maintaining their status as one of Europe’s most consistent performers.

Meanwhile, Mourinho’s side now faces a tough road ahead, having been eliminated from Europe at this stage.

The Super Lig club will now drop to UEFA’s second-tier competition, the Europa League, after failing in the elite Champions League.

With the qualifiers done and dusted, all attention now switches to the Champions League group phase, where Benfica will hope to avoid some of the big boys in a bid to stand a better chance of finishing in the elusive top eight of the group stages.

The Portuguese were joined by three others, according to UEFA, including Nigeria’s Raphael Onyedika and his Belgian club Club Brugge.