Trabzonspor Rejects Fatih Tekke's Resignation After Europa League Exit

Trabzonspor have turned down head coach Fatih Tekke’s resignation after a bruising Europa League exit, insisting the decision came in the heat of the moment.

The Turkish side, who stunned Europe in the summer by signing Mohamed Salah, were thrashed 4-0 by Ferencvaros in Hungary on Thursday night, crashing out of the play-off 5-0 on aggregate. The defeat, and the manner of it, hit hard.

Tekke, who guided Trabzonspor to third place in the Super Lig last season, offered his resignation in the immediate aftermath. Less than 24 hours later, the club moved to shut the door on that idea.

In a statement on Friday morning, Trabzonspor said the 48-year-old’s decision was driven by the “intense emotional impact” of the Europa League elimination, underlining their intention to continue with him in charge.

So the project survives, even if the European dream has already changed shape.

Instead of the Europa League, Trabzonspor will now drop into the Europa Conference League this season. They will discover their six opponents for the league phase on Friday, with the reshaped campaign set to test both the squad’s depth and Tekke’s authority after such a public flashpoint.

Off the pitch, the club have been anything but timid. The seven-time Turkish champions have attacked the transfer market, landing Premier League winners Salah and Fabinho and bringing Andre Onana back to the club on loan from Manchester United.

Salah’s arrival, at 34, sent shockwaves through European football. The Egypt international agreed to terminate his Liverpool contract by mutual consent at the end of last season, then chose Trabzonspor as his next step.

His legacy at Anfield is beyond dispute. Salah is the third-highest scorer in Liverpool’s history, with 257 goals in 442 appearances after joining from Roma in 2017, trailing only Ian Rush and Roger Hunt.

He has wasted little time announcing himself in claret and blue either. Salah scored his first two goals for Trabzonspor in a 2-1 win over Istanbul Basaksehir on Saturday, a performance that briefly hinted at a bright new era before the Ferencvaros defeat dragged the mood back down.

Now Tekke stays, the star names are in place, and the club drop into a different European competition. The question is no longer whether Trabzonspor can make a splash on the continent this season, but how quickly this shaken squad can turn a painful night in Hungary into fuel for what comes next.