When you’re managing the second-most successful football club in the country, a team who has won the league 19 times in total, then don’t be surprised if you’re job is on the line after falling 14 points behind the leaders before Christmas Day.
17 games into the current Turkish Super Lig season, Fenerbahce are stuck in fifth place. The title is long gone. Champions League qualification is starting to look rather pie in the sky too.
And, given that Fener hired and fired three different managers since the summer of 2018, Vitor Pereira was never going to be afforded too much patience at the Istanbul giants.
Pereira failed to win a single trophy during his first stint at Fenerbahce, in the 2015/16 season.
The 53-year-old returned to the Sukru Saracoglu Stadium in July with a point to prove, with unfinished business to, erm, finish.
But at least Pereira lasted the entire season the first time around. That is more than can be said for his second spell at Fenerbahce.
His sacking, announced on Monday night, means he stuck around for just 25 games this time. A tally of 11 wins and seven defeats speaks for itself.
“An agreement was reached with our coach Vitor Pereira about the termination of his contract,” reads a statement on Fenerbahce’s official Twitter account.
“We thank him for his efforts so far and wish him success in his future career.”
A brief statement, we’re sure you’ll agree. But then again, if you can’t say anything nice, maybe it’s better not to say anything at all.
Could Vitor Pereira finally get the Everton job?
What next for Pereira? Well, one would imagine he will be watching the Everton situation very closely indeed, as the ice threatens to crack under Rafa Benitez’s feat.
According to Goal, Pereira was one of the leading candidates to replace David Moyes at Goodison Park in 2013. He was a man in high-demand at the time, winning a pair of Primeira Liga titles at Porto.
He returned to the frame six years later, only to nail his colours to the Shanghai SIPG mast instead.
“It’s always an honour and I am utterly grateful to be considered on a list by a club that I have so much respect for,” Pereira told Sky when asked why he turned down the Everton job.
“I am still the coach of SIPG a club close to my heart.”
According to The Sun, Pereira struck a very different tone when the Everton job became available again last summer, following Carlo Ancelotti’s sudden return to Real Madrid.
By then, however, The Toffees were not as keen as him as he was on them.
But if Everton drop more points after Christmas, against the likes of Burnley and Newcastle United, Pereira’s new-found availability may not go unnoticed on Merseyside for long.
Could these two starcrossed lovers fall into each others arms at last?
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