'Emperor' Terim to manage Galatasaray for 4th time

Istanbul (AFP) – Turkish football icon Fatih Terim will Friday return to Istanbul giants Galatasaray for a fourth stint, following the dismissal of Croatian coach Igor Tudor.

“And just where we left off … He is back #FatihTerim,” the club announced on its official Twitter account.

Dubbed “Emperor”, 64-year-old Terim, the former Turkish national boss, has coached Galatasaray in three different stints (1996-2000, 2002-2004 and 2011-2013).

The signing ceremony will be at the club’s stadium at 1200 GMT, according to the club.

Galatasaray on Monday sacked Tudor, who had only joined the Istanbul giants in February, after a defeat saw the side slip from the top of the Super League.

The team is hungry for success having seen Istanbul arch rivals Besiktas claim the title in each of the last two years.

The Croatian had been under pressure to deliver since arriving in Istanbul and last weekend’s 2-1 defeat to little-heralded Yeni Malatyaspor marked the final straw.

The defeat saw Galatasaray cede top spot to fast-rising Basaksehir, also from Istanbul, with Besiktas sniffing at their heels in third.

Galatasaray spent lavishly in the close season, digging deep for the likes of French international striker Bafetimbi Gomis, Morocco midfielder Younes Belhanda, Brazilian midfielder Fernando and Algeria midfielder Sofiane Feghouli.

Terim had parted ways with the Turkish national team in July after being involved in a fight at a kebab restaurant.

The brawl was sparked over a partition that divided a steakhouse owned by Terim’s son-in-law and a kebab shop, according to Turkish media reports.

The Turkish Football Federation did not mention the incident but just announced in a brief statement in mid-July that Terim would quit over “non-football related issues”.