Beşiktaş rises on Demba Ba's shoulders

ISTANBUL

Beşiktaş’ Senegalese international Demba Ba shone over the weekend with two goals against city rivals Kasımpaşa, raising the total number of his league goals this year to five. 

The 29-year-old striker, who flew the roost at Chelsea to the Black Eagles at the start of the season, has scored 12 goals in all competitions this year in 15 appearances, becoming a phenomenon among fans.

He also scored an equalizer a week earlier against İstanbul Başakşehir before a winner by teammate Kerim Frei.

He has also scored seven goals in the UEFA Europa League so far, helping the Istanbul side accumulate eight points from four games.

Beşiktaş faced Kasımpaşa at Başakşehir’s Fatih Terim Stadium on Nov. 23, as it still lacks a home pitch this year due to ongoing reconstruction work at its normal ground, İnönü Stadium.

After converting his 28th-minute penalty, the first for Beşiktaş in the last 40 league games, Ba blasted home another just before half-time to give the home team a two-goal cushion at the interval. Beşiktaş pulled back and played out most of the second half in their own zone.   

Necip Uysal also performed admirably by assisting Ba on the second goal. Earlier in the match, he denied a header by Kasımpaşa’s Tunay Torun on the goal line when the scores were still level.

“The three points we’ve picked tonight means a lot to us because they are a disciplined and tough-to-beat team,” Croatian coach Slaven Bilic said after the game.  

“From that perspective, I am satisfied with our performance. If we are going to remain among the title contenders until the end of the season, we must work hard as a unit, withstand the pressure and win games. By looking at the way we’ve been playing lately, we deserve to be there,” he said.

Ba is likely to be Beşiktaş’s strongest gun against Greece’s Asteras Tripolis away in the Europa League on Nov. 27.