Former Liverpool striker Dirk Kuyt has been appointed interim manager for Turkish Super Lig side Fenerbahce ahead of next Wednesday’s league phase Champions League tie against his former club, with the 46-year-old having until now been serving as assistant to manager Ismail Kartal.
Kartal resigned following a contentious 2-1 defeat to historic rivals Galatasaray on Monday, and while it’s not clear at the moment whether Kuyt could be a long-term contender for the manager position it does seem certain
he will be the one tasked with preparing them to face Liverpool next week.
Kuyt moved into management in 2018 with Feyenoord’s youth teams before taking his first senior manager role at Den Haag in 2022. He then spent time at Beerschot and FC Dordrecht as manager before moving to join Kartal at Fenerbahce in the summer ahead of the 2026-27 season.
As a player, Kuyt spent three years at Fenerbahce after joining them from Liverpool in a €1M move in summer 2012. Before then, the industrious striker and right winger played six seasons at Anfield, recording 285 total appearances and scoring 71 goals while establishing himself as fan favourite.
