Trabzonspor continued their good begin underneath new supervisor Thomas Reis, as Mohamed Salah helped them see off title rivals Besiktas within the Super Lig. Meanwhile, Galatasaray and Fenerbahce each picked up three factors, although in very other ways.
Monday night noticed the massive recreation of the week in Turkey, as Thomas Reis’ in-form Trabzonspor hosted Vincenzo Italiano’s Besiktas, with each groups seeking to shut the hole on the summit of the desk.
Trabzon had received their first three video games in all competitions underneath their new German supervisor, whereas Besiktas had been coming off the again of a superb win at Hoffenheim within the Europa League.
Trabzon took the lead 20 minutes in, with Ozan Tufan smashing dwelling from shut vary. The dwelling facet shaded a aggressive and thrilling first half, however Besiktas defender Michael Murillo was responsible of lacking a sitter which may have modified the complexion of the sport heading into the break.
Besiktas got here out from the interval the stronger crew, dominating possession however struggling to actually create an excessive amount of.
However, the defining moments of the match occurred with 20 minutes left.
The ball fell to former Arsenal winger Leandro Trossard on the sting of the field. No one closed him down, and he was in a position to line up his shot with loads of time. Usually, the Belgian has confirmed himself so medical in these conditions, however his effort went inches broad of the publish.
A minute later, they obtained the last word sucker punch. Trabzon pounced on the counterattack, and Franculino, a nuisance all recreation, was far too sturdy and fast for Salih Ozcan, placing in a cross for Mohamed Salah to faucet dwelling, sealing a 2-0 win.
Another magnificent outcome for Trabzon underneath Reis. In the Super Lig, they’ve received all three video games underneath him for an combination rating of 9-0, together with victories over rivals Galatasaray and Besiktas.
Reis’ affect has been clear, and so they look much more organised defensively and extra prepared to get caught in, one thing Samsunspor additionally confirmed underneath him.
As anticipated, Salah has been a outstanding signing for Trabzon. He is the highest goalscorer within the league with eight objectives, whereas additionally having three assists. His all-round recreation has actually diminished from his prime days, however he’s nonetheless emphatic and decisive within the remaining third.
The win noticed them transfer as much as fourth, three factors off first.
For Besiktas, regardless of all of the reward they’ve obtained this season underneath Italiano, they’ve now misplaced three of their first eight video games. All of these defeats got here away from dwelling at Anatolian (non-Istanbul) groups, with their sole victory coming at Fenerbahce.
For varied causes, taking part in away from Istanbul is a far completely different problem for Galatasaray, Fenerbahce and Besiktas. So far, Italiano and Besiktas have not adjusted to that.
Galatasaray and Fenerbahce decide up wins
Just a few days after their heavy defeat to Barcelona within the Champions League, Galatasaray visited Genclerbirligi on Saturday afternoon. The pitch was in poor situation, making the sport scrappy and never very straightforward on the attention.
Perhaps fatigue from the midweek recreation was additionally an element, however Gala severely struggled to get a foothold in any respect, and if it weren’t for some actually poor ending and Ugurcan Cakir in objective, they could have dropped all three factors.
Yet with two minutes left, Gala discovered the winner they desperately craved. Substitute Deniz Gul drove at his defender on the wing earlier than firing an effort at objective from an angle, and goalkeeper Irfan Can Egribayat, who has been so good this season, inexplicably break up the ball into his personal web.
The objective was formally awarded to Deniz by the Turkish Football Federation, however you’ll be forgiven for considering it was an personal objective.
The four-time defending champions held on for a vital 1-0 win, and very like loads of their performances in 2026, it was removed from convincing.
Meanwhile, following their 6-0 hammering at Aston Villa, Fenerbahce wanted to get again to profitable methods at dwelling to Alanyaspor.
And they did precisely that, cruising to an authoritative, thumping 3-0 win. Romelu Lukaku netted his first objective for the membership within the first half, earlier than second-half substitutes Kerem Akturkoglu and Vedat Muriqi additionally obtained on the scoresheet.
Kerem has endured a troublesome season, drawing heavy criticism for some poor performances. He has been clearly low on confidence, so when he obtained his first objective of the marketing campaign, the aid confirmed within the celebrations.
They will must be prepared for subsequent week, although, with the primary Intercontinental Derby of the season, as they journey to fierce rivals Galatasaray. Always an enormous match on the soccer calendar, Gala can go six factors away from them with a triumph on dwelling turf.
Team of the Week
Kasimpasa defender Adem Arous is the Flashscore Player of the Week, in line with our very personal inner scores system, after the centre-back bagged a brace in a 4-1 victory over struggling Samsunspor.
He is joined by Fener duo Nelson Semedo and Matteo Guendouzi, Trabzon’s Salah and Andre Onana, in addition to Gala striker Victor Osimhen.
Tolga Akdeniz is a world senior editor for Flashscore, specialising in soccer, basketball and tennis. Our resident Turkish soccer knowledgeable, he can usually be discovered devouring the Super Lig. Tolga lives in London – you’ll be able to comply with him on X and YouTube, and browse his newest options proper here.
