Beşiktaş fires the title race with big win over Fenerbahçe

Defending champion Beşiktaş outlasted Fenerbahçe 3-0 on Saturday to end its long losing streak over its archrival and get back to the title race in the Turkcell Super League.

The Black Eagles avoided a possible 10-point deficit with the league leader, and managed to close in on Fenerbahçe by four points with the clear victory.

After a goalless 45 minutes, Beşiktaş piled on the pressure in the second half and the home team’s efforts paid off quickly when Michael Fink powered a scorcher past Volkan Demirel in the 54th minute. The German midfielder got a high pass from left back İbrahim Üzülmez and shot the ball without letting it fall to score probably one of the best goals of the Turkcell Super League this season.

Beşiktaş doubled the score only three minutes after the first one, with Brazilian striker Bobo coolly finishing a chance he found inside the Fenerbahçe box.

With the game nearing the end, the Black Eagles scored the third with midfielder Uğur İnceman taking the pass from man-of-the-match İbrahim Üzülmez and finding the net from close range in the 83rd minute.

The game, which was played under heavy fog in Istanbul, ended in Beşiktaş’s victory to turn the title race again into a three-strong race. Last year’s double trophy winner got its seventh consecutive league win to close in on Fenerbahçe and Galatasaray, which occupy the top two spots of the league.

“We had to play rationally and take control of the game,” said Beşiktaş coach Mustafa Denizli after the game. “It means a lot to Beşiktaş to win against a strong team as Fenerbahçe is tonight. In any other result, there would be a situation in the standings that would be so hard to overturn.”

Beşiktaş also snapped its eight-match run without a win in league games against Fenerbahçe.

“We wanted to get back into the title race and beat our rival that we could not beat for a long time,” added Denizli. “A win would give positive signals to us, and that was what we did. We did not only beat Fenerbahçe 3-0, we won lots of other things.”

Fenerbahçe star Alex de Souza said that Beşiktaş deserved its win.

“In games like these, simple details determine the outcome of the game,” said the Brazilian star, who saw his 45th minute shot deflected off the post. “My shot was a detail like that. Or the referee could have blown the penalty for us with İbrahim Üzülmez’s foul on Gökhan Gönül. Details determine the score and tonight the details were all in Beşiktaş’s favor. As a whole, they deserved the win.”

Fenerbahçe coach Christoph Daum said that his team could not play on the same level in both halves of the game.

“I think we played well in the first half, but we could not maintain it in the second,” said the German. “We made some big mistakes in the first half; we have to take lessons from them.”

One of the heroes in Beşiktaş’s victory, Michael Fink, said that he just tried to do his job.

“I have been given the duty to try and control Alex,” said Fink. “He is a good player and has made an impact in many games this season. I tried to play close to him to control his game.”

Fink did not only make an impact in defense, as he was the one changing the course of the game with his stunning strike.

“İbrahim Üzülmez made a really good cross,” said Fink. “And I shot. That was a nice goal.”