Sports Mole previews Thursday's Turkish Super Lig clash between Galatasaray and Kasimpasa, including predictions, team news and possible line-ups.
Turkish Super Lig Giants Galatasaray have only won once in their last 10 league outings, putting them in 13th place on the table, and they will look to change their fortunes on Thursday, when they receive kasimpasa to Istanbul.
By contrast, this week's visitors are in fine form, stringing together a four-game winning streak in all competitions, their best run of the season so far.
match preview
ยฉReuters
Galatasaray's new coach Domenec Torrent took over his first game last time after replacing Fatih Terim on the bench, but his reign with Cimbom did not start as he would have liked.
Torrent sided with them to face third-placed Hatayspor on Sunday, and despite taking the lead twice, the visitors fell to a 4-2 loss, posting consecutive losses for the second time this season.
Galatasaray's hopes of securing European football next year are fading game by game, and they now need to make up a seven-point gap with fourth-placed Istanbul Basaksehir.
Thursday's home team will hope to achieve a better result in Torrent's second game in charge, after the new manager has had a little more time to implement his ideas in the team.
Cimbom's defensive stats on their own patch are much better than away from home, so perhaps they could look to earn three points on Thursday by building off a solid defensive platform.
Kasimpasa's three consecutive Super Lig victories have helped him move closer to safety, now sitting in 17th place and holding exactly the same record as Goztepe, in 16th place.
รzgur รcalThe Turkey team may feel that now is the perfect time to face Turkish giants Galatasaray, given the poor form of their hosts, and they will feel confident heading into this encounter after a 2-0 victory away from home last time against Giresunspor.
Mortadha Ben Ouannes Y florent hadergjonaj they hit it right in that match to seal Kasimpasa's three points, which was a vital win as Giresunspor are now just four points clear of Ocal's side.
That win was also significant going into Thursday's clash with Galatasaray as it was Kasimpasa's first away win in the league this season, boosting his confidence ahead of another away trip.
During the last meeting between these two sides, Kasimpasa came from behind to achieve a 2-2 draw in August, when both sides created an entertaining number of chances.
Galatasaray Turkish Super League form:
Galatasaray form (all competitions):
Kasimpasa Turkish Super Lig form:
Form Kasimpasa (all competitions):
team news
ยฉReuters
Mostafa Mohamed Y Sofiane Feghouli add to Galatasaray's squad shortage as they are currently out of international duty at the Africa Cup of Nations.
Burn Turan, Christian Luyindama, arslan light, Mbaye Diagne, Fernando Muslera Y Omar Elabdellaoui All are expected to miss Thursday due to injury, with Diagne known to be the closest to a full recovery.
Taylan is from Antalya was shown a direct red card last time, while the yellow card Berkan Kulu received in that game means he has reached the season-long suspension threshold for bookings, so both will be suspended on Thursday.
Kasimpasa has fewer selection worries to deal with as only three of his players are forced to miss out due to injury, including, jeffrey haze, Nicolai Jorgensen and Valentin Eysseric.
Ocal is expected to name the same starting line-up for the team he fielded to defeat Giresunspor at the weekend, meaning Hope Bozok He will continue to lead Kasimpasa, where he is on loan from Lorient in Ligue 1.
Ouannes and Ahmet Engin he will provide the width for the visitors on either side of a midfield four, while Dogucan Haspolat will sit just behind those four in a more defensive midfield role.
Possible Galatasaray starting eleven:
Cype; Van Aanholt, Marcao, Ozturk, Boey; Kutlu, Cicaldau; Akturkoglu, Morutan, Kilinc; Dervisoglu
Possible starting lineup for Kasimpasa:
Taskiran; Elmali, Brecka, Free, Hadergjonaj; Haspolat; Engin, Travnik, Hajradinovic, Ouannes; Bozok
We say: Galatasaray 1-1 Kasimpasa
Galatasaray will want to tighten up the defense after conceding four goals last time out, suggesting Kasimpasa may be limited to just a few chances, which is why he was only able to score once.
The Torrent team needs to attack the game in front of their own home crowd, so they should find the back of the net as well, but both teams are likely to cancel each other out on the day.
Better advice
Our expert informant partners in Sporita.com predict under 3.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they're predicting for this game and for more of their tried and tested soccer tips.Less than 3.5:data
