2024-25 Turkish Super Lig surprise package Eyupspor will look to strengthen their grip on fourth place when they travel to face a revitalised Trabzonspor at Papara Park on Monday.
The visitors sit on 39 points after 21 league matches, five clear of fellow newly promoted side Goztepe, who occupy fifth place.
Match preview
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Eyupspor are enjoying one of the best debut seasons in Turkish Super Lig history, with the top-flight newcomers firmly in the hunt for a European spot beyond the halfway point of the campaign.
Arda Turan's men had a sensational first half of the 2024-25 season and have carried that momentum into the second half, remaining unbeaten in their last five league matches while winning their last four.
However, they are still adapting to life without talisman Ahmed Kutucu, who departed for league leaders Galatasaray in the winter transfer window, and their attacking struggles were evident in last week's 1-0 win over Sivasspor, where they only found the net in the 89th minute after their opponents were reduced to nine men.
These difficulties were further exposed on Tuesday when Eyupspor suffered a 3-1 defeat to Konyaspor in the Turkish Cup, ending a seven-match unbeaten streak and a five-game winning run.
Turan's side will play at Papara Park for the first time in their history, aiming to score their first goal and claim their first victory in this fixture, following a goalless draw in the reverse fixture.
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However, Trabzonspor have been formidable at home, winning their last four competitive matches at Papara Park and going unbeaten in their last six, with five of those being victories.
The Black Sea Storm boast the seventh-best home record in the Super Lig and have scored the joint-third most goals (26) on their own turf.
Overall, Senol Gunes's side have been in fine form since losing their first match of 2025 against Samsunspor, responding with three consecutive wins before a goalless draw at Kayserispor last Saturday.
They followed that result with another stalemate, a 2-2 draw against third-tier Iskenderunspor in the Turkish Cup, where they had to come from behind twice.
Trabzonspor's resurgence has lifted them to 11th place in the Super Lig standings, giving them a nine-point cushion over the relegation zone and some much-needed breathing room.
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Team News
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Trabzonspor will be without Eren Elmali and Batista Mendy, with the former suspended due to accumulated yellow cards and the latter serving a ban after receiving a red card against Sivasspor.
Arif Bosluk, Denis Dragus, Onuralp Cevikkan, Okay Yokuslu and Serdar Saatci are all sidelined through injury and will not be available for selection.
Eyupspor will be missing Caner Erkin, who is suspended due to accumulated yellow cards, while Fredrik Midtsjo and Taskin Ilter remain out with long-term injuries.
Recep Niyaz, Sinan Gumus, Leo Dubois and Samu Saiz are also unavailable due to injury, but Berke Ozer and Luccas Claro have completed their suspensions and are expected to return to the starting lineup.
Trabzonspor possible starting lineup:
Cakir; Malheiro, Savic, Batagov, Bosluk; Tufan, Gunes, Lundstram; Zubkov, Banza, Sikan
Eyupspor possible starting lineup:
Ozer; Vezo, Yalcin, Claro, Melras; Akbaba, Stepanenko; Akbunar, Mor, Ampem; Thiam
We say: Trabzonspor 2-1 Eyupspor
Trabzonspor's strong home form has carried their season, but Eyupspor's resilience makes this a close contest – however, without Kutucu the visitors may struggle in attack yet again, which is why they are predicting the hosts to edge this one.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
