Relegation-bound Hatayspor welcome Konyaspor in Round 32 of the Turkish Super Lig, with the visitors looking to widen the gap between themselves and the bottom four.
The Anatolian Eagles claimed a vital 1-0 victory over Goztepe in their last outing, boosting their survival chances with six matches remaining.
Match preview
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Konyaspor's survival push has been built largely on solid home form, and they made the most of it again last weekend by edging Goztepe 1-0.
That result marked their third win in four league matches, and a third straight 1-0 home success, following similar outcomes against Besiktas and Gaziantep.
A narrow 1-0 defeat away to Istanbul Basaksehir had briefly halted their momentum, but Recep Ucar's side have bounced back and now sit on 37 points, six clear of the relegation zone.
With three remaining home fixtures against Adana Demirspor, Caykur Rizespor and Alanyaspor, Konyaspor will back themselves to get over the line.
Their away form, however, remains a cause for concern, and Friday's visit to Hatayspor is the first of three away matches still to come, with trips to Antalyaspor and title contenders Fenerbahce also on the horizon.
Konyaspor have failed to win any of their last seven away league games, managing just 11 points from a possible 45 on the road, with only Hatayspor and Adana Demirspor (10 defeats each) have lost more games on the road this season than Konyaspor (nine).
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The reverse fixture back in November ended 1-1, a result that both sides might accept again given the current circumstances.
Currently 15 points adrift of safety, Hatayspor are firmly on course for relegation, and although manager Murat Sahin will be keen to delay the inevitable, recent results have not helped their cause.
The Stars of the South have suffered three consecutive defeats, the latest being a 2-1 loss at Gaziantep, which followed 1-0 and 5-0 defeats to Eyupspor and Kayserispor.
With only four wins from 29 matches this campaign and tough fixtures against three of the current top six still to come, their five-year stay in the Turkish top flight appears to be nearing its end.
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Team News
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Hatayspor will be without Lamine Diack and Kerim Alici, both sidelined through injury, though Chandrel Massanga is expected to return to the starting XI in place of Diack.
With Cemali Sertel suspended, Joelson Fernandes is likely to fill in at left-back, while Kamil Corekci and Rui Pedro are also in line to start, with both Burak Yilmaz and Gorkem Saglam serving suspensions.
Konyaspor are dealing with several injury absences, including Guilherme, Emmanuel Boateng, Josip Calusic, Hamidou Keyta and Tunahan Tasci.
However, they will be boosted by the return of Melih Ibrahimoglu, who is available again after serving a suspension.
Hatayspor possible starting lineup:
Bekaj; Corecki, Calvo, Kilama, Fernandes; Massanga, Parmak; Strandberg, Pedro, Boutobba; Aboubakar
Konyaspor possible starting lineup:
Slowik; Bazoer, Demirbag, Yazgili; Subasi, Ibrahimoglu, Jevtovic, Ndao; Aleksic, Pedrinho; Kramer
We say: Hatayspor 1-1 Konyaspor
Hatayspor have endured a difficult campaign overall, but their recent home form offers a glimmer of encouragement, with just two defeats in their last five matches at the Mersin Stadium.
While Konyaspor's away record has been far from convincing, we expect them to do enough to avoid defeat here, though we are not confident enough to back them for all three points, which is why a share of the spoils appears the most likely outcome.
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