At opposite ends of the Turkish Super Lig table, Galatasaray and Adana Demirspor will face off at Rams Park on Sunday, with the hosts looking to maintain their lead at the top of the standings.
Cimbom currently hold a six-point advantage over their closest challengers and, despite recent struggles to win convincingly, they are widely expected to triumph in this encounter.
Match preview
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Since the turn of the year, Galatasaray have appeared to slow down in the Super Lig, failing to win any game by more than a single-goal margin and unexpectedly dropping points in a draw away at Hatayspor.
It was a similar story in their most recent league outing, as Okan Buruk's side managed to scrape a 1-0 victory at Gaziantep, with new signing Ahmed Kutucu finding the net in his first start for the club.
Despite their struggles, securing maximum points was crucial for Galatasaray, allowing them to restore their six-point cushion over city and title rivals Fenerbahce, who had briefly closed the gap with a win the previous day.
In terms of stature and current standing, this fixture is one of the most one-sided on paper in the Super Lig this season, and the hosts will be eager to extend their dominance, having won the last four meetings between the sides.
Buruk's men set the tone with a 4-1 victory over second-tier Boluspor in the Turkish Cup on Thursday, with new arrival Alvaro Morata opening the scoring.
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Adana Demirspor travel to Istanbul hoping to salvage a respectable result, but all signs point towards a heavy defeat for the struggling visitors.
The Blue Lightnings entered their last league match against Kasimpasa with yet another new manager – their fifth of the campaign – but the appointment of Mustafa Avci failed to bring a change in fortunes as they suffered a 5-3 defeat.
With relegation all but certain, there is an overwhelming sense of doom surrounding their season, as they remain rooted to the bottom with just five points from 21 matches, sitting 18 points adrift of safety.
Defensive frailties have been a recurring theme, with Adana Demirspor conceding 12 goals across their last three matches – shipping at least three in each – and a similar outcome is expected on Sunday.
Team News
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Mauro Icardi is ruled out for the season with a cruciate ligament injury, but Galatasaray have addressed his absence with the signing of Morata, who is expected to partner Victor Osimhen in attack.
Ismail Jakobs, Kerem Demirbay and Yunus Akgun are also sidelined through injury, while Abdulkerim Bardakci, Fernando Muslera, Lucas Torreira and Baris Alper Yilmaz are all suspended due to accumulated yellow cards.
Meanwhile, the visitors also have a few injury concerns, with Bunyamin Bala ruled out for several weeks and Andrew Gravillon sidelined for the remainder of the season.
However, Maestro and Yusuf Barasi have completed their suspensions and are expected to return to the starting XI.
Galatasaray possible starting lineup:
Guvenc; Ayhan, Sanchez, Yesilyurt; Sallai, Lemina, Sara, Jelert; Mertens; Osimhen, Moarata
Adana Demirspor possible starting lineup:
Donmezer; Burak, Guler, Kalender, Kurtulan; Maestro, Aydogan, Alioui; Kol, Aymbetov, Barasi
We say: Galatasaray 4-1 Adana Demirspor
Galatasaray are expected to dominate proceedings, dictating possession and carving out numerous chances against a fragile Adana Demirspor defence.
With their attacking firepower, Cimbom are expected to secure a convincing victory against a struggling Adana whose defensive frailties will likely be exposed once again.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
