UEFA has no mercy for Jose Mourinho » The referee who dismissed him from Fenerbahce will blow the whistle!
Article by Aurelian Botezatu – Published Monday, February 23, 2026, 1:10 p.m. / Updated Monday, February 23, 2026, 1:11 p.m.
Slavko Vincic will referee the second leg of the Real Madrid – Benfica play-off (1-0 in the first leg). It is the third time this season that the Slovenian has taken charge of a Benfica match in the Champions League. The Portuguese won the precedents.
The 46-year-old Slovenian referee has the difficult task of keeping the return from the Bernabéu in check after the tense game at the Estádio da Luz, when Vinicius jr accused one of the Benfica players of racism.
Jose Mourinho on the referee of the second leg with Real Madrid: “Let's see if they don't give us Anthony Taylor”
After the 1-0 defeat in the first leg, José Mourinho even joked about the possibility of Anthony Taylor refereeing the duel on Wednesday. “Let's see if Anthony Taylor doesn't come“, he said in a press conference, but it seems UEFA listened and appointed a name to the Portuguese coach's liking.
Exactly one year ago, in a “Clásico” between Fenerbahçe and Galatasaray, the Slovenian, and not a Turkish referee, led the game, which ended in a tie, 0-0, on the field of the champion. Mourinho praised his performance at the time, at a time when foreign refereeing was a hot topic in Turkey.
“If it wasn't for you, this match would have been a disaster”
“First of all, I think it was a great match and that's because the refereeing was very good. Vincic had enough experience and integrity, mentality, to survive in this jungle. Actually, it's very difficult to referee in this environment. I think it was a good match for both teams, because they both have top players,” Fenerbahce's coach said at the time.
“If you look at the performance of this referee, make a self-criticism and say that you want to referee clean and honest matches like him, the season will end well. If the circus we've been witnessing since the beginning of the year continues, it will be different. After the match, I went to the referees' locker room and, after congratulating Vincic, I turned to the fourth referee, who is Turkish, and told him: “If it was you, this match would have been a disaster”, the Portuguese coach said.
Benfica have a good record with Slavko Vincic in 2025 – 2026, not Jose Mourinho
The Slovenian referee likes the “eagles” and the proof is in the recent history. This will be the third time that Vincic has refereed a Benfica match this Champions League season, with the previous two resulting in victories: 2-0 with Napoli in the group stage and 1-0 with Fenerbahçe, a result that led to qualification for the competition.
On the date of the match with Benfica (0-1), José Mourinho was on Fenerbahce's bench and that was the Portuguese technician's last match as coach of the Turks. After missing out on the Champions League, Fenerbahce's management kicked him out.
Before this season, Benfica had never won a game with Vincic at center: three draws with Fenerbahçe (1-1 in 2018), PSV (0-0 in 2021) and Ajax (2-2 in 2022), as well as a defeat to Chelsea in the Club World Championship (1-4 after extra time).
