Mohamed Salah could not prevent his new Trabzonspor outfit from falling to Ferencvaros in the Europa League playoff, a result which prompted head coach Fatih Tekke to resign
Mohamed Salah at Trabzonspor
Mohamed Salah arrived at Trabzonspor this summer after leaving Liverpool as a free agent(Image: Photo by Hakan Burak Altunoz/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Mohamed Salah's first few weeks with new side Trabzonspor haven't exactly gone to plan, with defeat this week prompting head coach Fatih Tekke to unsuccessfully offer his resignation.
The Turkish head coach was left bereft after his team were unceremoniously knocked out of the Europa League playoffs by Ferencvaros in qualifying over two legs. A narrow 1-0 defeat at home last week was followed by a dreadful 4-0 loss in Hungary.
And Tekke, known in his home country by the nickname Sultan, chose to walk away from the club due to the "emotional intensity" he felt in the aftermath of the elimination. Trabzonspor refused to accept the 48-year-old's resignation, however, and revealed as much in a public statement via their social media channels.
Their statement read: "Public announcement. Our manager Fatih Tekke has decided to resign due to the emotional intensity caused by the defeat following the Ferencvaros match.
"As the Trabzonspor Board of Directors, our manager Fatih Tekke's resignation decision has not been accepted. Fatih Tekke continues in his role as manager and will be at the helm of our team in the Amedspor match we will play in the league. Respectfully announced to the public."
For former Liverpool attacker Salah, the turmoil could hardly have come at a more difficult time period. Having only just signed for his new club back at the beginning of this month, results have been somewhat mixed.
Mohamed Salah
Mohamed Salah's time in Turkey hasn't got off to the best start(Image: Getty Images)
On Salah's debut he came off the bench just before the hour mark but could not prevent the team from dropping points as they were held to a 1-1 draw by Kasimpasa.
He then started the first-leg of the Ferencvaros tie at the Şenol Güneş Sports Complex which they lost on home turf before they saw off league rivals Istanbul Basaksehir.
But the result last night in Budapest was the worst of the lot with Salah being substituted as his side - with nine men following red cards to Ruslan Malinovskyi and Sidny Lopes Cabral - were battered thanks to goals from Callum O'Dowda, Marius Corbu, Bamidele Yusuf and Krisztian Lisztes.
The disappointment for Trabzonspor as well as Salah will come with a sense of frustration for the Egyptian who left Anfield during a period of contrasting stability.
The 34-year-old did not have the best first outing for his new side, either, and Turkish media slaughtered his performance in the game against Ferencvaros.
Outlet Sozcu wrote: "Some fans claimed Salah was far from his glory days and that the transfer was a mistake, while others argued that he would reach his true potential in the upcoming matches."
The same publication described Salah as having made a "disappointing start to the season" and claimed he had "failed to meet expectations in his first match at the Akyazi Stadium."