Beşiktaş travels to Sivas in high spirit

Defending Turkcell Super League champion Beşiktaş is at the top of its form and wants to add Sivasspor to its long list of victims.

Mustafa Denizli’s players have won seven league games in a row, the last being a convincing 3-0 victory over leader Fenerbahçe, while Wednesday’s triumph at Manchester United in the Champions League will surely boost the squad’s morale.

Beşiktaş beat Manchester United 1-0 thanks to a first half goal from Roger Tello, ending its opponent’s 23-game unbeaten run at European games at home in the process.

It was Beşiktaş's first Champions League success outside Istanbul since beating Chelsea 2-0 in London in 2003. More significantly, it kept alive the team’s hopes of qualifying for the Europa League.

Beşiktaş is three points behind its final opponent CSKA Moscow, whom it faces at İnönü Stadium next month. A victory better than 2-1 will see the Istanbul team through to the next round.

"At home we are quite strong and play well. The fans will be behind us especially after this win. We're going to make it difficult for them," said Tello, whose side became the second Turkish team to end a long unbeaten United home run.

Fenerbahçe's 1-0 victory in Manchester on Nov. 30, 1996 was the Reds' first home loss on the European stage in more than 40 years.

Beşiktaş will travel to Sivas on Sunday for a week 14 game in the Turkcell Super League, while Galatasaray will play at Bursaspor away on Friday and Fenerbahçe will host Kasımpaşa on Saturday night.

Last year’s runner-up Sivasspor is having a nightmare season. The team has 10 points and lies in 16th place, mired in the relegation zone. 

The team’s long-time coach Bülent Uygun resigned in early October after eight games, but Sivasspor has only won once while losing four under new coach Muhsin Ertuğral.

Beşiktaş’s good form is also bad news for the Central Anatolian side and Ertuğral spoke carefully about this before the game.

“We have been preparing for the Beşiktaş game for 20 days now,” Ertuğral told reporters before his team’s practice session Thursday. Sivasspor’s game on week 13 was scheduled against the automatically relegated Ankaraspor, while the team had another week off during the break for national games.

 “We want to get as many points as possible until the end of the first half,” he said. “We know the importance of the Beşiktaş game. Our opponent is strong and is in very good form. We will be prepared.”

Bursa confident

The game of the week will be played Friday night, when fourth-placed Bursaspor hosts Galatasaray.

Following a 1-1 draw at home last week against minnow Manisaspor and a scandal surrounding the club’s basketball team, Galatasaray is going through a difficult period. Bursaspor and its coach Ertuğrul Sağlam have no intention of easing things for the Istanbul team.

“We want Bursa residents to celebrate two bayrams on Friday,” Sağlam told reporters Thursday, referring to the fact that Friday is the first day of the Kurban Bayram (Feast of the Sacrifice) holiday. “We will leap over Galatasaray if we win the match – that is one of the many reasons why we should triumph.”

Bursaspor won 1-0 at Gaziantepspor last week and Sağlam said the away win was a source of moral boost for the team. “Our supporters create a great atmosphere at Atatürk Stadium when we play at home, and with their help, the team is ready to upset Galatasaray.”

On Saturday, leader Fenerbahçe hosts Kasımpaşa, which has improved its form in recent weeks. Once a cellar-dweller, Kasımpaşa beat Trabzonspor 3-1 last week to climb out of the relegation zone, leaving Trabzon without a coach.

General manager Ünal Kahraman will be in charge of Trabzonspor on Sunday when the team hosts Eskişehirspor. Former national team coach Şenol Güneş is expected to take the post at the Black Sea side.

In the week’s other games, Diyarbakırspor hosts Ankaraspor, Gençlerbirliği travels to Antalyaspor, Ankaragücü takes on Denizlispor at home, Istanbul Municipality will entertain Gaziantepspor and Kayserispor will visit Manisapsor.