A crucial bottom-half contest in the Super Lig will be played out on Monday night, with Sivasspor heading to Konya Buyuksehir Belediye Stadyumu to take on Konyaspor.
The hosts are currently in 15th place in the league standings with 14 points in as many games, while the visitors are 13th on the log and just one point above their opponents.
Match preview
Konyaspor are a long way from the type of form that saw them end last season in the top half of the table and just six points below the top six.
The Anatolian Eagles have managed just three wins, five draws and six losses in the current campaign and are just one point above Pendikspor, who are the first side in the dreaded drop zone.
Aleksandar Stanojevic's side secured their place in the fifth round of the Turkish Cup in midweek with a 3-0 win over lower-league Beyoglu Yeni Carsi, although they will need to try and bring the same level of performance back to the league competition.
The hosts last league match ended 2-2 against Alanyaspor, meaning they have now only posted one victory in their last 10 league matches, which was a 2-0 win over Kasimpasa following the international break last month.
They will now shift their focus to Monday night's game, where they will be hoping to claim their first victory over this opponent in their last three attempts.
Meanwhile, Sivasspor managed to avoid relegation last season by the slenderest of margins, and based on their start this term, they are likely to battle at the bottom end of the table again in the current campaign.
The Braves have a record of three wins, six draws, and five losses so far this season, and they head into this encounter having failed to win any of their last four league games, including two draws and two losses.
Like their opponents, Servet Cetin's side progressed to the next round of the Turkish Cup in midweek with a 2-1 win over Arnavutkoy Belediyespor, with former Al Nassr striker Ahmed Musa scoring his first goal for the club since his arrival.
While their league record of late does little to inspire confidence in their chances here, Sivasspor have earned 10 of their 14 points on the road this season and are unbeaten in their last three visits to this venue dating back to December 2020.
Team News
Konyaspor were dealt a fresh injury blow after Ahmet Oguz picked up a muscle strain against Alanyaspor, and his absence should see Cebrail Karayel step into the four-man backline for this match.
Oguz will join Nelson Oliveira (knock), Gokhan Tore (ankle) and attacker Muhammet Demir (ACL) on the treatment table.
Sivasspor are set to remain without Bengali-Fode Koita for the foreseeable future, which should see Rey Manaj continue as the sole striker for this match.
Wingers Emrah Bassan and Gerson Rodrigues are both ruled out for this match with calf injuries, while Modou Barrow is still recovering from a muscle injury and is a few weeks away from returning to the squad.
Konyaspor possible starting lineup:
Bernardoni; Karayel, Demirbag, Calvo, Haubert; Dikmen, Yazgili; Moreno, Cicaldau, Muric; Cikalleshi
Sivasspor possible starting lineup:
Sasal; Okumus, Camara, Appindangoye, Ciftci; Konak, Njie, Charisis, Alonso, Kapacak; Manaj
We say: Konyaspor 2-2 Sivasspor
Both these sides are in need of a few good results to open up some daylight between themselves and the drop zone, and they will see this as a match that they could go on to win. We expect this to be a very evenly contested game and feel that both teams will have to settle for a share of the spoils at the final whistle.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Devesh Jaganath
