Ghanaian defender Alexander Djiku was in action as Fenerbahce got eliminated from the UEFA Champions League preliminary round by Lille on Tuesday, August 13, 2024.
Jose Mourinho's side struggled to make amends after losing 2-1 to the French Ligue 1 side in the first leg of the encounter.
Fenerbahce had to rely on a late own goal in added time by Bafode Diakite to force the game into extra time.
However, Lille were awarded a penalty, and Jonathan David converted it in the 118th minute to secure a 1-1 draw after extra time, allowing Lille to advance with a 3-2 aggregate scoreline.
Djiku played the entire 120 minutes, but the Turks were unable to stop Lille from running away with the victory.
Mourinho was hired in June on an $11 million annual salary to try to win Fenerbahce’s first Turkish league title since 2014.
He was attempting to get his new team into the revamped 36-team league stage of the Champions League, which he won with Porto in 2004 and Inter Milan in 2010.
JNA/OGB
