Fenerbahce president Alic Koç has described the club's sacking of José Mourinho "painful" but necessary in order for his team to play "better football."

Mourinho, 62, was dismissed by Fenerbahce on Aug. 29 in the aftermath of the team's 1-0 aggregate loss to Benfica in the Champions League qualification playoffs.

"Why did we fire Mourinho? I'll say it for the first time, it was a painful dismissal," Koc told Turkish sports outlet Fanatik .

"Parting ways with someone who is above all a friend was tough. Being eliminated by Benfica wasn't a problem, but the way we were eliminated was unacceptable. This made me feel like last year's football would continue. We parted ways because we believed this squad would be playing better football at this point."

Koç said he believes Mourinno's

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