Antalyaspor and Adana Demirspor have experienced a similar start to the 2021-22 Turkish Super Lig campaign, the latter currently sitting just one point above Antalyaspor, who are 13th in the league table.
Both teams enter this clash on Friday after recording their second victories of the season, with neither side managing back-to-back victories so far.
Match preview
Antalyaspor have kept two clean sheets in their last two outings, and their latest result bettered their first clean sheet as they managed to score a late winner against Yeni Malatyaspor.
Ersun Yanal's side only recorded two shots on target in that game, and the home side had to wait until the 89th minute for Guray Vural to seal the three points and 1-0 victory for Antalyaspor.
Goalkeeper Ruud Boffin's second clean sheet in as many games will please Yanal, after his side had conceded at least two goals in their four matches prior to that.
The home team will be hoping that Boffin can make that three clean sheets in three games, but they are facing a side who have scored 12 goals in their opening seven fixtures - the most out of any other team sitting outside the top five in the Super Lig.
Adana Demirspor may pose an attacking threat, but the hosts will be looking to exploit weaknesses in Demirspor's defence, which has conceded eight goals in their last four matches.
However, there was no such problem last time out for Ferhat Kaplan in between the posts for Adana Demirspor, who recorded an emphatic 4-0 win over Gaziantep thanks to goals from Yunus Akgun, Mario Balotelli, Britt Assombalonga and an own goal from Steven Caulker.
That result was Vincenzo Montella's side's biggest win of the season so far, and the third game in a row that his team have scored three or more goals, making them a real attacking threat.
Demirspor have not recorded an away victory so far this season, but a 3-3 draw at the home of Turkish giants Besiktas in their last outing on the road will give them the confidence that they can take three points back home with them on Friday.
Both of these teams will want to create a healthy distance between themselves and the relegation zone even at this early stage of the season, and a win for either side could open a five- or six-point gap from 17th position.
- L
- W
- L
- L
- D
- W
- D
- D
- L
- W
- D
- W
Team News
Antalyaspor defensive duo Bahadir Ozturk and Dogukan Nelik will both be absent from the home side's squad on Friday as they continue their recoveries from injury.
Yanal altered three of the front four last time out, with Gokdeniz Bayrakdar, Fredy and Paul Mukairu coming in for Enzo Crivelli, Amilton and Deni Milosevic - only Haji Wright retained his spot in the starting 11 from an attacking point of view.
Nuri Sahin and Andrea Poli are certain to start in the middle of the pitch for the home side, as they have done for the opening seven matches in the Super Lig this season.
Adana Demirspor attacking midfielder Younes Belhanda has not featured for the side since September 11 as he is suffering with a muscle injury, and he will be sidelined for Friday's clash also.
The back four, made up by Joher Rassoul, Simon Deli, Samet Akaydin and Jonas Svensson, with Benjamin Stambouli and Sinan Kurt sitting in front of them in midfield, remained unchanged last time out and are all expected to start again this week.
Balotelli and Assombalonga have shared the role of leading the line for Demirspor this season, and after the Italian forward started the last game, Assombalonga is likely to be included in the starting 11 this week.
Antalyaspor possible starting lineup:
Boffin; Vural, Naldo, Sari, Floranus; Sahin, Poli; Mukairu, Fredy, Bayrakdar; Wright
Adana Demirspor possible starting lineup:
Kaplan; Rassoul, Deli, Akaydin, Svensson; Stambouli, Kurt; Vargas, Bjarnason, Akgun; Assombalonga
We say: Antalyaspor 1-2 Adana Demirspor
Adana Demirspor were in fine form in front of goal in their last outing, and that could be the difference between these two sides on Friday, as Antalyaspor have only scored three times in their last four matches.
Assombalonga and Balotelli are finding their stride this season, and with that duo as an option for the away side, they will be confident of recording their first away win after a decent result last time they travelled to Besiktas.
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 Adana Demirspor win with a probability of 38.92%. A win for Antalyaspor had a probability of 35.4% and a draw had a probability of 25.7%.
The most likely scoreline for an Adana Demirspor win was 0-1 with a probability of 9.21%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-2 (8.51%) and 0-2 (6.44%). The likeliest Antalyaspor win was 1-0 (8.7%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.17%). The actual scoreline of 1-2 was predicted with an 8.5% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Adana Demirspor would win this match.
