Two sides desperate to climb out of the relegation mire will go head-to-head as Bodrumspor welcome Kayserispor to Bodrum Ilce Stadi on Sunday.
Both teams find themselves entrenched in the danger zone, with the hosts sitting 17th in the Turkish Super Lig standings on 14 points, while the visitors are only marginally better off, occupying 16th place with just one point more.
Match preview
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Bodrumspor's recent uplift in form was short-lived as they fell to an 86th-minute goal in a 1-0 defeat at Trabzonspor in their last league outing.
This loss brought an end to their two-match winning streak across all competitions, which included their first league victory under head coach Volkan Demirel.
The newly-promoted side have struggled for consistency, winning just four of their 16 Super Lig matches while suffering 10 defeats, leaving them four points adrift of safety at this stage of the campaign.
After enduring a seven-match winless streak prior to their win over Sivasspor, Bodrumspor will be keen to avoid a similar slump, and returning to the familiar surroundings of Bodrum Ilce Stadi offers hope, as three of their four league victories have come at home.
They have also been significantly more effective on their turf, scoring 50% more goals and conceding 10 fewer compared to their performances on the road.
This clash marks the first-ever top-flight meeting between the two sides, and with both teams embroiled in a relegation battle, the stakes could not be higher.
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Sinan Kaloglu's appointment in October initially seemed to steer Kayserispor in the right direction, with the team going unbeaten in his first five league games
However, that early promise has since faded, as the Anatolian Star have now lost four of their last five matches, with a 2-0 victory over Alanyaspor providing the only respite during this period.
In their last league outing, Kayserispor were comprehensively outplayed in a 5-1 defeat to league leaders Galatasaray, a result that leaves them three points adrift of safety.
Kaloglu will view Sunday's showdown as a vital opportunity to claw back ground in the survival race, and encouragingly for the visitors, two of their three league wins this season have come away from home, giving them reason to believe they can secure three points in this relegation six-pointer.
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Team News
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Bodrumspor will be without Tunahan Akpinar, who is dealing with a shin issue and Arlind Ajeti, looking to recover from an ankle injury.
Suleyman Ozdamar is doubtful for the clash, as he is in a race against time to recover from ankle injury, while Mustafa Erdilman and Samet Yalcin are confirmed out through injuries.
As for Kayserispor, they will remain without Majid Hosseini, who has suffered a serious ankle injury that will keep him out of contention for a while.
Arif Kocaman and Eray Ozbek, neither of whom were expected to start here, are also injured, while goalkeeper Bilal Bayazit also remains sidelined with an ankle issue.
Mehdi Bourabia is suspended for this game after picking up a yellow card last time out to pass the threshold for cautions.
Bodrumspor possible starting lineup:
Sousa; Ergun, Aytemur, Celustka, Sen; Antalyali, Mohammed; Bayrakdar, Fredy, Seferi; Puscas
Kayserispor possible starting lineup:
Piri; Sazdagi, Attamhah, Jeanvier, Carole; Yilmaz, Karimi; Kaldirim, Cardoso, Boa Morte; Bahoken
We say: Bodrumspor 1-1 Kayserispor
Bodrumspor have proven to be a stronger force on home turf than on their travels, while Kayserispor have displayed a knack for producing better performances away from home than in front of their own fans.
Taking these dynamics into account, we anticipate a closely contested encounter where both sides could neutralise each other's strengths, and as such, a stalemate seems the most likely outcome, with neither team expected to gain the upper hand in the end.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
