Dirk Kuyt named Fenerbahce interim coach before Liverpool tie

Fenerbahce have appointed former Netherlands forward Dirk Kuyt as interim coach a week before their Champions League meeting with his former club Liverpool. He replaces Ismail Kartal, who resigned following Monday's 2-1 defeat by Galatasaray.

Fenerbahce said Kuyt would hold the post "until a new head coach is appointed". His first match will be a league game against Goztepe on Saturday, before Fenerbahce host Liverpool in a Champions League group-stage match on Wednesday, 4 November at 17:45 GMT.

Kuyt joined Fenerbahce as an assistant in June 2026 and takes over with the side fifth in the Turkish top flight, six points behind leaders Galatasaray. He spent six years at Liverpool, scoring 71 goals in 285 appearances and winning the League Cup in 2012.

• Kuyt played 130 matches for Fenerbahce between 2012 and 2015, winning the Turkish league title in 2013-14 and the Turkish Cup and Super Cup in 2013.
• Kartal had already offered his resignation in September after a supporter threw a bottle at him, but Fenerbahce's board kept him in charge.