Two sides fighting at opposite ends of the Turkish Super Lig table will do battle on their return from the international break on Sunday, as Besiktas travel to take on Samsunspor.
Following a tough run before the break, the visitors find themselves fifth in Turkey's top flight with a nine-point gap up to the top two, while their visitors sit 19th but are now within two points of safety.
Match preview
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After winning promotion back to the Turkish Super Lig last season, Samsunspor had to endure a dismal start to the new top-flight campaign, picking up just two points from their first nine outings, conceding 16 goals along the way while only scoring five.
A losing run, which eventually stretched to six matches, spelled the end of promotion-winning manager Huseyin Eroglu's tenure, and while new boss Markus Gisdol was unable to inspire an instant turnaround, with his first two games producing just one point, they would then pick up a first league victory of the campaign at the 10th time of asking, coming from behind to beat Hatayspor 2-1 thanks to goals in the final 15 minutes from Ercan Kara and Kingsley Schindler.
Istanbulspor were the next visitors to the Samsun 19 May Stadium and The Red Lightning made it back-to-back 2-1 victories again thanks to a late goal, as Soner Aydogdu levelled the scores 20 minutes from time and Youssef Ait Bennasser netted the decisive goal three minutes into injury time.
Having quickly moved closer to safety with that pair of results on home turf, Gisdol's side set out to continue their improvement when they travelled to Pendikspor in the final game before the break, but they had to leave empty-handed following a 1-0 defeat with Erencan Yardimci netting the only goal early in the second half.
Nonetheless, Samsunspor do return to action in a more encouraging position with just a two-point gap up to Konyaspor outside of the drop zone and with a degree of renewed confidence under their new boss, and they will aim to defy the odds and get back to winning ways on Sunday with the chance to move out the bottom four.
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They face a difficult test, though, as Besiktas make the trip aiming to narrow the gap to the top two after an inconsistent spell before the break in their bid to regain the Turkish Super Lig title this term.
After finishing 10 points behind winners Galatasaray last time around, the Istanbul giants have certainly endured an underwhelming start to the new campaign, managing 22 points from their opening 12 matches having already suffered four league defeats, as many as they took in the entirety of the previous Super Lig term, with title-rivals Galatasaray and Fenerbahce already nine points better off.
Senol Gunes would depart in early October, and Burak Yilmaz's temporary spell in charge last month produced two victories and two defeats from a four-match span in the top flight, as the Black Eagles fell short away at Galatasaray before Riza Calimbay was appointed as the full-time successor on the back of a 3-2 defeat away at Antalyaspor.
His tenure began in their final match before the recent international break as they hosted Istanbul Basaksehir at Besiktas Park, and the Black Eagles took a vital three-point haul as Jackson Muleka netted the only goal of the game early in the second half.
While they certainly find themselves in a disappointing position after 12 rounds of fixtures, having already given up major ground to their rivals, Besiktas may have renewed confidence under their new boss having returned to winning ways before the break, and they will now look to pick up where they left off on Sunday and make it back-to-back triumphs in their bid to close the gap to the top two in the coming weeks.
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Team News
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Even after the international break, Samsunspor continue to deal with a long injury list, as Marc Bola, Landry Dimata, Moryke Fofana and Zeki Yavru are all set to remain confined to the treatment room this weekend.
Goals have not been aplenty in the squad with no one boasting more than one goal so far this season, but Ercan Kara should continue to lead the line having played an important role since his arrival from Orlando City, while former Celtic and Swansea City man Olivier Ntcham should come in from the start in an attacking role.
Emre Kilinc should again line up on the other flank, while Flavien Tait and Youssef Ait Bennasser will continue their partnership at the base of the midfield in front of Lubomir Satka and mainstay Rick van Drongelen in the middle of the back four.
Besiktas are also dealing with an unenviable list of selection concerns on their return to action, with defenders Eric Bailly and Arthur Masuaku, midfielder Jean Onana and wingers Rachid Ghezzal and Milot Rashica all expected to miss out through injuries, while Ante Rebic will also be absent as he serves a one-game suspension for an accumulation of Super Lig yellow cards.
In Rebic's absence, Jackson Muleka will likely move out to the left wing in their 4-3-3 shape, accommodating the return of striker Vincent Aboubakar, who has notched up 11 goals in 18 appearances in all competitions so far this term including four in Turkey's top flight.
Bakhtiyar Zaynutdinov will likely complete that front three, while Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is set to come in and join Saluh Ucan and Gedson Fernandes in midfield, with Daniel Amartey and Necip Uysal again set to get the nod at centre-back after their clean sheet last time out, despite facing competition from Omar Colley.
Samsunspor possible starting lineup:
Kocuk; Tirpan, Satka, Van Drongelen, Gonul; Tait, Bennasser; Ntcham, Holse, Kilinc; Kara
Besiktas possible starting lineup:
Gunok; Rosier, Amartey, Uysal, Bingol; Fernandes, Ucan, Oxlade-Chamberlain; Zaynutdinov, Aboubakar, Muleka
We say: Samsunspor 0-2 Besiktas
Besiktas will know that they must now put a strong run of results together if they are to stay competitive in the title race, even at this early stage, and with renewed confidence having opened with a win under their new boss, we fancy them to mark their return to action with a win away at the strugglers on Sunday.
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