Both aiming to extend their respective unbeaten runs, Ankaragucu will welcome Antalyaspor to Eryaman Stadyumu on Friday night for what looks set to be a thrilling Turkish Super Lig encounter.
The hosts enjoyed a positive end to October and are now looking to climb into the upper echelons of the division, while Antalyaspor could make it four-straight wins with success in the capital.
Match preview
Ankaragucu extended their unbeaten run across all competitions by sharing the spoils at the end of a sensational six-goal thriller against Istanbul Basaksehir at Fatih Terim Stadyumu, although the visitors will feel as if they could have collected their fourth league win of the term from the affair.
Goals from Ali Sowe, Pedrinho and Tolga Cigerci put the Ankara-based club into the lead on three separate occasions on Sunday, but the hosts Basaksehir were able to restore parity each time, with Joao Figueiredo finding the net and Poland international Krzysztof Piatek bagging a first-half brace.
Emre Belozoglu's men are currently occupying 12th position in the Super Lig standings after collecting a steady 13 points from their opening 11 games, meaning they possess a three-point buffer over Pendikspor, who are sitting at the top of the relegation places in the division.
Outside of the league's top-four clubs, no side has made the net ripple more times than Ankaragucu this campaign, and Friday's hosts have shared the goalscoring burden around pretty evenly, meaning Efkan Bekiroglu leads the club's Golden Boot race with just four strikes.
After back-to-back defeats against title chasers Galatasaray and Gaziantep to commence October, Antalyaspor are now in the midst of their best run of the form so far this season, with a 3-2 win over fifth-placed Besiktas on Sunday stretching the Scorpions winning spell to three matches.
Former Everton striker Cenk Tosun put the visitors ahead at Corendon Airlines Park last time out, but the hosts staged a remarkable comeback in the early stages of the second period, with a Dario Saric strike and a pair from Sagiv Yehezkel securing a maximum for Antalyaspor.
With the likes of Basaksehir and Sunday's opponents Besiktas failing to reach their usual heights at the start of the 2023-24 term, there is a real opportunity for Seckin Ozdil's side to push for a top-four finish and subsequent European football, with the Scorpions currently in eighth, four points behind Trabzonspor in fourth.
Poland international Adam Buksa will be imperative in any continental charge for Antalyaspor this term, and the former New England Revolution man has netted four goals in nine Super Lig appearances since securing a temporary switch from Ligue 1 outfit Lens in the summer.
Team News
Ankaragucu will be without the services of right-back Stelios Kitsiou until after the international break, with the two-time Greece international suffering a knee injury in the draw against Konyaspor back in September.
The hosts are expected to name a similar XI to the one which shared the points with out-of-form Basaksehir last time out, meaning Anastasios Chatzigiovanis and Garry Rodrigues will be tasked with providing ample service from the flanks for Ali Sowe.
Antalyaspor are set to field an unchanged side after a glorious day against Besiktas on the weekend, so the centre-back pairing for the visitors will remain as Veysel Sari and former Borussia Dortmund enforcer Omer Toprak.
Ramzi Safuri was the only player in the Scorpions' offensive-midfield trio who failed to register a goal contribution in the victory on Sunday, but the Israeli should keep his place in the side over Dutchman Sander van de Streek.
Ankaragucu possible starting lineup:
Gungordu; Bilazer, Radakovic, Mujakic, Hanousek; Cigerci, Bekiroglu; Rodrigues, Pedrinho, Chatzigiovanis; Sowe
Antalyaspor possible starting lineup:
Leite; Balci, Sari, Toprak, Yesilyurt; Rakip, Saric, Yehezkel, Safuri, Bytyqi; Buksa
We say: Ankaragucu 1-1 Antalyaspor
Ankaragucu have won all three of their most-recent home matches by an aggregate scoreline of 7-0, but we expect a tough test for the hosts on Friday night.
Antalyaspor are starting to find some consistency this term and we reckon the Scorpions will be good enough for a point at Eryaman Stadyumu in this one.
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Top tip
Carter White
