Trabzonspor win Ziraat Turkish Cup
ANKARA- Anadolu Agency
Trabzonspor shutout Aytemiz Alanyaspor on July 29 to win the 2020 Ziraat Turkish Cup.
Trabzonspor took the lead when Norwegian forward Alexander Sorloth crossed the ball into the goal area and Turkish midfielder Abdülkadir Ömür flicked it into Alanyaspor's net for the 1-0 score.
In injury time in the second half, Alanyaspor forward Papiss Cisse's equalized with a header but the goal was disallowed because of an offside call.
Near the end of the match, Sorloth added an insurance goal on a counterattack at Istanbul's Atatürk Olympic Stadium for the 2-0 win.
In the second half, Trabzonspor left back Filip Novak faced a serious head injury and was taken to hospital.
Ömür was named the man of the match. Trabzonspor's Turkish goalkeeper Uğurcan Çakır and Argentine midfielder Jose Sosa lifted the trophy during the cup ceremony.
Trabzonspor has won the Turkish Cup nine times as the Black Sea club previously claimed it in 1977, 1978, 1984, 1992, 1995, 2003, 2004 and 2010.
It was Alanyaspor's first final, returning home with a silver medal.
Galatasaray has the most trophies in Turkish Cup history with 18.
No relegations for 2019-20 season in Turkish Süper Lig
Meanwhile, the Turkish Football Federation (TFF) on July 29 announced that clubs will not be relegated to a lower league for the 2019-20 season in the top-tier Turkish Süper Lig.
TFF chairman Nihat Özdemir made the announcement, adding that 21 teams will play in the Super Lig next season.
So, BtcTurk Yeni Malatyaspor, Hes Kablo Kayserispor and MKE Ankaragücü will play in the division next season as these three would normally have been relegated to the second-tier TFF First League once the season ended.
Özdemir said four teams would be relegated at the end of the 2020-21 season from Süper Lig, with 20 to compete in the top-tier division's 2021-22 season.
He added that the Supr Lig's new foreign player restrictions would also not apply for the 2020-21 season.
The current rules say Süper Lig clubs could sign a maximum of 14 foreigners in a season as there are no restrictions for the starting 11.
The new rule indicates that clubs can sign 14 foreign players at most, with eight playing on the pitch at any given time.
