Kasimpasa host Galatasaray on Sunday afternoon at the Recep Tayyip Erdogan Stadium, aiming to fuel their European aspirations and potentially throw a spanner in the title race.
The hosts are just three points behind the fourth-placed side while the visitors are two points clear at the top.
Match preview
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Kasimpasa put a halt to their three-game winless streak, securing a comeback 2-1 victory over bottom-placed Istanbulspor last time out.
Florian Loshaj's 25th-minute goal put the Apaches behind at half time but Nuno da Costa and Mortadha Ben Ouannes helped complete the turnaround in the second half.
Sami Ugurlu's side closed the gap on fourth-placed Besiktas, who have lost their last two league games, and will now have their sights on clinching onto the Europa Conference League spot.
While Kasimpasa have conceded 51 goals in 29 league matches, making their defence the third-worst in the Super Lig, only better than the bottom two, Istanbulspor (54) and Pendikspor (61); they have scored 50 goals, making their attack the third-best in the league, only behind the top two sides.
Keeping the league leaders at bay will be the ultimate test for the Apaches, as Ugurlu will have to ensure they concede at a lesser rate while keeping their attacking swagger if they are to clinch that European ticket.
However, this could be a tough ask for the home side, who have lost 61 times in 80 encounters against Sunday's opposition, winning just seven times and just three of those victories were on home soil in 38 attempts.
Galatasaray extended their Super Lig winning streak to 10 matches after a 6-2 victory over Caykur Rizespor last Friday with midfielder Kerem Demirbay bagging a hat-trick.
This win ensured that the Lions maintained their two-point lead over Fenerbahce at the top of the Turkish Super Lig table in what has been a keenly-contested title race this season.
Okan Buruk's side have pushed for the title largely thanks to their defence, which is the best in the league with only 17 goals conceded after 29 matches, but the manager will been even more pleased by that his side are now finding the net at a good rate, scoring 12 goals in their last four matches.
While the Lions have beaten their next opposition in three consecutive meetings, it has not been particularly smooth-sailing, with those victories all being by a goal margin and they could secure a win in their last trips to Kasimpasa.
Team News
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Kasimpasa will be without Dries Saddiki, who is out with a hamstring injury and no specific return date.
Turkish midfielder Erdem Cetinkaya remains a doubt and will have to pass a late fitness test to feature.
Da Costa, who has scored his 10th league goal in the last game, is expected to lead the line again on Sunday.
Galatasaray will be without Davinson Sanchez, Abdlkerim Bardakci and Serge Aurier who are nursing different injuries.
Mauro Icardi, who found the net against Rizespor last time out, should spearhead the attack for Gala once again.
Kasimpasa possible starting lineup:
Gianniotis; Winck, Ciftpinar, Ozcan, Omeruo; Guel, Kara; Fall, Hajradinovic, Caglayan; Da Costa
Galatasaray possible starting lineup:
Muslera; Kohn, Nelsson, Kutlu, Ayhan; Torreira, Demirbay; Akturkoglu, Mertens, Yilmaz; Icardi
We say: Kasimpasa 1-2 Galatasaray
Galatasaray are unstoppable at the moment and we think they will carry this momentum into the game with Kasimpasa. It is crunch time in the title race and the Lions will dig deep to secure three points again. However, it should be a close affair as the home side also have an European ticket within sight.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
