Newly-promoted Samsunspor face a stern test on matchday two of the Super Lig when they welcome Fenerbahce to Samsun Yeni 19 Mayis Stadyumu on Monday night.
The hosts made a promising start in their return to the Super Lig last week, earning an important point away from home while the visitors recorded their seventh consecutive opening weekend win over Gaziantep FK.
Match preview
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Samsunspor returned to the Super Lig this season after a 10-season wait by winning the TFF First Division last year with 78 points, 10 points clear of Rizespor, who finished in second place.
The hosts recorded 23 wins, nine draws and conceded just four losses in the campaign while also posting the best attacking and defensive records with 70 goals scored and just 26 conceded.
After going behind inside the opening 15 minutes against Sivasspor last week, Huseyin Eroglu's side fought back well in the second half and were eventually rewarded for their hard work with a goal from Rick van Drongelen 10 minutes before the end.
However, now going up against the Turkish giants, they will know that they are in for a much more difficult test, and they will likely find themselves confined to counterattacks with their opponents expected to dominate the flow of the match.
Meanwhile, Fenerbahce ended the 2022-23 Super Lig season in second place for the second successive season, and they will be determined to go one better in this campaign.
The visitors managed 80 points last season, which was eight fewer than the eventual league winners Galatasaray and two ahead of their fierce rivals Besiktas, who finished down in third place.
Under the guidance of former manager Jorge Jesus, who has now moved on to Saudi Pro League club Al Hilal, Fenerbahce recorded 25 wins, five draws and six losses, although they were the highest-scoring team in the league with 87 goals.
New boss Ismail Kartal will now look to find a way to get them back to the top of the league, and he began his rein on a positive note, winning his first league match in charge while also securing his side's place in the Champions League playoffs.
Fenerbahce have won each of their five competitive matches this season, scoring two or more goals in each of those games while maintaining three clean sheets in that time, and they come into this one as the clear favourites, according to the bookmakers.
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Team News
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The defensive combination of Van Drongelen, Alim Ozturk and Zeki Yavru worked very well last week against Sivasspor, and they should make up the three-man backline again in this one.
After a quiet first-half performance, Marius Mouandilmadji was taken off Gaetan Laura early in the second half last week, and we could see them swop places in this match.
Kartal will have to make do without the services of Serdar Aziz and Emre Mor, with both players ruled out until next month with muscle injuries.
Lincoln did not feature in any of their preseason or Champions League qualification matches with an ACL injury, and reports suggest that he could remain sidelined until December.
Samsunspor possible starting lineup:
Kocuk; Yavru, Ozturk, Van Drongelen; Schindler, Antalyali, Ntcham, Kilinc, Bola; Mouandilmadji, Fofana
Fenerbahce possible starting lineup:
Bayindir; Kadioglu, Akaydin, Djiku, Oosterwolde; Yuksek, Zajc, Szymanski; Tadic, Dzeko, Kent
We say: Samsunspor 0-3 Fenerbahce
While it is still early days in the season, Fenerbahce's performances in the Champions League qualifiers and last weeks league match have been eye-catching. They are scoring goals for fun at the moment, and we expect them to get another few in this one as well.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Devesh Jaganath
