Dirk Kuyt has left Fenerbahçe after the club decided not to include the 46-year-old Dutch assistant coach in the new technical staff under Emre Belözoğlu, Hürriyet reported on Wednesday.
The decision ends a short interim spell in charge for Kuyt, who stepped into the dugout following the departure of İsmail Kartal. During his brief time leading the team, Fenerbahçe suffered a 2–1 loss at home to Göztepe in the Süper Lig before securing a 3–2 victory over English side Liverpool in the UEFA Champions League, according to Hürriyet.
Fenerbahçe, Dirk Kuyt’a veda etti. pic.twitter.com/cgnqyq1Wtn
Following the win against Liverpool, Kuyt expressed his desire to remain with the club. “Emre ile iyi bir arkadaşlığımız var,” Kuyt told Hürriyet, adding that he hoped to continue working under Belözoğlu as long as the club president wanted him.
Habertürk reported that Kuyt will not be assigned any alternative role within the club. Nefes Gazetesi added that the former player declined a proposal to take up a position in the club’s youth setup, prompting the final separation.
Fenerbahçe published a statement confirming the departure and thanking the Dutch coach for his service. “Teşekkürler Dirk Kuyt. Sarı Lacivert hikayemiz yıllar önce başladı ve aramızdaki bağ hiç kopmadı,” the club said, according to Hürriyet.
Milliyet said that former club president Aziz Yıldırım had favored keeping Kuyt within the organization, potentially as an academy director. However, discussions ultimately led to a clean break once Belözoğlu finalized his own coaching staff.
Teşekkürler Dirk Kuyt! Sarı Lacivert hikayemiz yıllar önce başladı ve aramızdaki bağ hiç kopmadı. Önce sahada, sonra kulübede bizimleydin. Çubuklu’ya duyduğun sevgi ve bağlılığınla hepimizin kalbinde özel bir yer edindin. Bu renklere kattığın her şey için sana gönülden… pic.twitter.com/XWaOhLDBmY
Nefes Gazetesi confirmed that Kuyt rejected the secondary club assignment. The official statement from Fenerbahçe emphasized that his connection to the club remains intact despite his exit from the coaching staff.
Emre Belözoğlu took over managerial duties following a 5–0 victory over Çorum that strengthened his position within the club, Sözcü Gazetesi reported. Belözoğlu inherits an 11-person technical team and plans to add an additional Spanish coach who previously worked under Pep Guardiola, according to Sözcü Gazetesi.
The club’s management and Belözoğlu plan to evaluate the squad over a demanding stretch of seven matches across the Süper Lig and UEFA Champions League. Sözcü Gazetesi outlined that these fixtures will determine winter transfer window priorities ahead of January.
Fenerbahçe returns to action following the international break with fixtures against Kocaeli, Shakhtar, Erzurum, Başakşehir, LASK, Trabzonspor, and Kasımpaşa, as reported by Sözcü Gazetesi.
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