A 37-year wait for a Super Lig title could come to an end for Trabzonspor this weekend, should they take three points off Antalyaspor on Saturday afternoon.
Cruising at the top of the table, an 11-point gap sits between Trabzonspor and second-placed Fenerbahce, with just four games of the campaign left to play.
Match preview
© Reuters
In truth, given their superior goal difference over Fenerbahce, just one point should be enough for Trabzonspor to secure the league title.
Fenerbahce can finish on a maximum points tally of 77, should they finish the season without dropping any points, with Trabzonspor currently sat on 76.
A victory would confirm what is essentially already a successful championship-winning season for Trabzonspor, as the almost four-decade long wait to return to the top of Turkish football looks set to end.
Last lifting the Super Lig in 1984, Trabzonspor have been unable to compete with Turkey's 'big three', but have found form under manager Abdullah Avci.
On top of winning the league, Trabzonspor will also make a return to the Champions League next season, having last competed in the competition during the 2011-12 group stage.
Hoping to delay the Trabzonspor title party for another weekend at least, Antalyaspor will travel to the champions-elect with a comfortable mid-table position already secured.
An astonishing run of 12 Super Lig matches without defeat has solidified Antalyaspor's position within the division's middle classes, as they look to end the season in strong form.
Six wins from their last seven matches could pose Trabzonspor some problems, especially given the Black Sea Storm's shaky form against Saturday's opponents.
Defeated in the reverse fixture back in December, Trabzonspor boast just one win from their last four league matches against Antalyaspor.
No doubt keen to improve their torrid record against Antalyaspor, the league leaders will be confident of snatching a result and confirming the Super Lig title when they meet this weekend.
- W
- L
- D
- D
- D
- W
- L
- D
- D
- D
- W
- W
- W
- W
- W
- W
- W
- D
Team News
© Reuters
While their season may be ending with a league title, Trabzonspor will be without a crop of regulars for this weekend's clash.
An Achilles tendon problem has ruled Bruno Peres out for the remainder of the campaign, whereas veteran forward Anthony Nwakaeme is unlikely to play again this season.
Elsewhere, Huseyin Turkmen is suffering from a muscle problem and is unlikely to return ahead of the weekend, with Anders Trondsen also set to miss Saturday's clash.
As for the visitors, Admir Mehmedi is nursing a muscle problem and will be unavailable to face Trabzonspor.
The only other injury concern for Antalyaspor comes in the shape of Harun Alpsoy, who will sit the match out with a niggle.
Trabzonspor possible starting lineup:
Cakir; Kaplan, Siopis, Hugo, Denswil; Hamsik, Tokoz; Kouassi, Omur, Visca; Cornelius
Antalyaspor possible starting lineup:
Boffin; Balci, Sari, Kudryashov, Vural; Bayrakdar, Ozmert, Fernando, Sinik; Adriano, Wright
We say: Trabzonspor 3-1 Antalyaspor
Having been in the works for some time, this weekend is gearing up to be the one where Trabzonspor's pursuit of the Turkish title finally comes to an end.
By far the standout team during this season's Super Lig, Trabzonspor will be keen to wrap up the title in style with a comfortable win over Antalyaspor.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Trabzonspor win with a probability of 63.12%. A draw had a probability of 20.9% and a win for Antalyaspor had a probability of 16.02%.
The most likely scoreline for a Trabzonspor win was 1-0 with a probability of 11.11%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (11.09%) and 2-1 (9.9%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (9.91%), while for an Antalyaspor win it was 0-1 (4.96%). The actual scoreline of 2-2 was predicted with a 4.4% likelihood.
