Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has come back from the brink at Besiktas, and his winner against Fenerbahce left Jose Mourinho claiming the “worst team won.”
After reports in June that he had been transfer-listed and left out of Besiktas’ plans for the new campaign, Oxlade-Chamberlain is beginning to revive his fortunes.
The former Liverpool midfielder came off the bench for his first appearance of the season against Hatayspor on Monday night, before doing the same against Fenerbahce five days later.
Sent into the maelstrom of an Istanbul derby, the 31-year-old went on to score the winner in a 1-0 victory for Besiktas.
It came in a moment of fortune, with Oxlade-Chamberlain’s whipped cross intended for Ciro Immobile only for the striker to miss it completely and, with the goalkeeper expecting a shot, the ball instead trickled straight in.
Deciding the derby just three minutes after coming on, he became an unlikely hero for Besiktas and left Fenerbahce manager Mourinho fuming.
“We deserved at least a draw. The match was under our control, but we couldn’t finish it,” he told reporters after the game, per GOAL.
“I congratulate the referee and Besiktas. The worst team won.
“Although we weren’t perfect, I think we were better, but they took advantage of their only chance. We will continue to fight for the championship.”
Oxlade-Chamberlain’s goal was, of course, not Besiktas’ only chance, and in fact they had the ball in the back of the net again late on through Semih Kilicsoy only to be ruled out for offside.
Both sides had 12 shots, per FotMob, with Besiktas having five on target to Fenerbahce’s two, while the hosts missed one big chance and the visitors five.
The post-match xG stood at 0.98-1.00, showing that it was a tight game decided by Oxlade-Chamberlain’s flukey effort.
Oxlade-Chamberlain left Liverpool for Besiktas on a free transfer in 2023, but has struggled to find his feet since and was linked with a return to England over the summer.
Having failed to make a single appearance under Giovanni van Bronckhorst, however, he has been handed a lifeline by interim head coach Serdar Topraktepe after the Dutchman was sacked last week.
Funnily enough, Mourinho was critical of the decision to fire Van Bronckhorst, asking the Turkish media for “a little bit of credit,” according to GOAL
“[The Turkish press] still kill me. Give me a little bit of credit,” he vented.
“Don’t try to do to me what was done to Giovanni van Bronckhorst.
“I don’t know any coach that in three, four, five months can make miracles, can change things. For me, he was doing a great job.”
