Istanbul Basaksehir and Antalyaspor will face off in a Turkish Super Lig clash on Sunday evening at the Basaksehir Fatih Terim Stadyumu.
Both teams have four points so far, but the hosts have this tally from two matches while the visitors have played three.
Match preview
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After a successful 2023-24 Super Lig campaign that secured a Conference League qualification spot, Istanbul Basaksehir appear to be picking up where they left off last season.
The Grey Owls secured their place in the main draw of Europe's third-tier cup competition with a 2-0 win over St Patrick's Athletic on home soil last Wednesday.
Cagdas Atan's men will face Copenhagen, Cercle Brugge, and Celje away, while they will host Heidenheim, SK Rapid and Petrocub in the new group stage format.
Back in the league, Basaksehir secured their first league win of the season with a 4-2 victory over Alanyaspor on August 18, which has left them in fifth place despite playing one fewer game than most teams.
Unbeaten in their first eight games across all competitions this season, the Grey Owls are heading into this fixture filled with confidence, as they have also lost just once in their last 10 league games dating back to the previous campaign.
Both fixtures between these sides ended 1-0 in favour of the team at home in either leg, with Basaksehir securing a win at this venue, while Antalyaspor secured victory at Antalya Stadium.
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Meanwhile, secured their first win of the season with a hard-fought 3-2 comeback victory over Hatayspor at the Antalya Stadyumu last Sunday.
Carlos Strandberg's first-half brace had left the Scorpions trailing at the break, but a lifeline came when Hatayspor were reduced to ten men in the 51st minute.
Thalisson Kelven ignited the comeback with a goal on the hour mark, before Moussa Djenepo restored parity five minutes later. However, they left it late before clinching all three points when Braian Samudio converted from the spot to complete the turn around four minutes into stoppage time.
It was the first competitive win under new manager Alex, who took over the role at the start of the season – a victory he will hope serves as a turning point to his poor start.
The Scorpions are, however, on a poor run on the road, having gone winless in their five away games dating back to last season, losing four of those matches while drawing one.
Team News
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Istanbul Basaksehir will head into Sunday's clash with a full squad, leaving the manager with plenty of options.
Joao Figueiredo has scored two league goals for the hosts, the most of anyone in the team, and he will be the man to watch.
Samudio has scored three of Antalyaspor's five goals in the league, making him joint-top scorer in the Super Lig.
The visitors will look up to him to deliver the goods once again, as he starts at the tip of the attack in a 3-4-2-1.
Istanbul Basaksehir possible starting lineup:
Sengezer; Ba, Opoku, Duarte, Sahiner; Turuc, Ergun; Davidson, Ozcan, Figueiredo; Piatek
Antalyaspor possible starting lineup:
Piric; Gerxhaliu, Kelven, Ingenc; Yilmaz, Dikmen, Rakip, Djenepo; Uzun, Safouri; Samudio
We say: Istanbul Basaksehir 2-0 Antalyaspor
Basaksehir are in excellent form, having embarked on an eight-match unbeaten streak at the start of the season – their impressive run extends back to the previous campaign, making them strong favourites to secure a victory against Antalyaspor in this clash.
The visitors, under new management, are still finding their footing and may struggle to match Basaksehir's momentum.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
