In-form Besiktas will aim to extend their hot streak in the Turkish Super Lig when they welcome Gaziantep to Tupras Stadium on Monday evening.
The Black Eagles are unbeaten in five league matches under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, winning their last four in succession to breathe new life into their European aspirations.
Match preview
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Besiktas' resurgence under Solskjaer continued with a 2-0 victory over Kayserispor last time out, courtesy of Joao Mario's opener on the stroke of half-time and a late penalty from Semih Kilicsoy.
That result stretched the Black Eagles' unbeaten Super Lig run to nine matches and strengthened their grip on fourth place with 44 points, four clear of fifth-placed Eyupspor.
Since Solskjaer's arrival, Besiktas have tightened up defensively, conceding just two goals in four league outings while keeping two clean sheets in that time, while they have also been ruthless in attack, averaging 2.5 goals per game.
A home fixture against Gaziantep in their current form is one the Besiktas faithful will relish, particularly given the lingering animosity from the reverse fixture, when GFK boss Selcuk Inan's exuberant celebrations in the 1-1 draw were deemed excessive.
The Black Eagles have every reason to be confident of extending their winning streak to five matches, having dominated this fixture at Tupras Stadium – they have won all eight meetings between the sides on home turf across all competitions.
Furthermore, Besiktas have been formidable at home, avoiding defeat in their last eight matches in all competitions, winning the last four, including two in the Super Lig.
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Meanwhile, Gaziantep will be keen to extend their unbeaten run in this fixture to three matches, having claimed a win and a draw in the last two encounters.
GFK returned to winning ways with a 3-1 home victory over Eyupspor last time out, but that was only their second win in their last six league outings, having suffered three defeats and drawn once in that spell.
Inan's side have struggled on their travels this season, recording the league's joint-worst home-away points disparity alongside Trabzonspor (22 points) – both teams have collected 27 points on home soil but just five on the road.
Gaziantep's last away victory came in a 1-0 league win at Bodrumspor back in August, and since then, they have played 11 competitive away matches, losing nine and drawing two.
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Team News
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Besiktas will once again be without Necip Uysal, who remains sidelined with a long-term injury and is not expected back until April.
The Black Eagles are also missing Emrecan Terzi and Bakhtiyor Zaynutdinov, both recovering from thigh injuries.
After an impressive performance against Kayserispor, Solskjaer is expected to name an unchanged starting XI.
For Gaziantep, Sokratis Dioudis remains unavailable through injury, meaning Burak Bozan is set to start in goal.
Emmanuel Boateng, who netted twice as a substitute last time out, is likely to be rewarded with a starting role at the expense of Halil Dervisoglu.
Besiktas possible starting lineup:
Gunok; Masuaku, Uduokhai,Topcu, Svensson; Fernandes, Oxlade-Chamberlain; Mario, Rafa, Rashica; Immobile
Gaziantep possible starting lineup:
Bozan; Viana, Kizildag, Husic; Sorescu, Daubin, Maxim, Ndiaye, Lungoyi; Boateng, Okereke
We say: Besiktas 3-1 Gaziantep
Both the Besiktas squad and their passionate supporters are fully prepared for this clash, and the intensity inside Tupras Stadium is expected to be overwhelming for a Gaziantep side that has struggled on the road all season.
However, the visitors have found the net in three of their last four away matches, and we anticipate they will pose some threat going forward – even so, Besiktas should have too much quality and firepower, making for a comfortable victory in the end.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
