With the Süper Lig title slipping via their fingers, Fenerbahçe journey to Istanbul Başakşehir on Friday in a must-win conflict that might both prolong or extinguish their dwindling championship goals.
After a season fraught with drama, defensive lapses, and inner storms, Jose Mourinho’s Fenerbahçe discover themselves chasing shadows.
A deflating 1-0 house defeat to bitter rivals Beşiktaş – settled by Gedson Fernandes’ scientific strike – all however crushed their hopes of catching leaders Galatasaray.
That loss widened the hole to eight factors, with solely 4 matches remaining, and left Mourinho going through an undesirable slice of historical past: the primary Fenerbahçe boss since Joachim Low in 1998-99 to lose his first two derbies in opposition to Beşiktaş.
Fenerbahçe’s woes in opposition to high sides have turn out to be a defining sample of the Portuguese tactician’s tenure.
Across 5 conferences with Galatasaray and Beşiktaş, Mourinho has didn’t style victory – 4 losses and a single draw – whereas additionally falling brief in opposition to each membership within the high six.
The membership’s final league crown got here 11 years in the past, and what started as a marketing campaign of promise is shortly descending into a well-recognized story of near-misses and frustrations.
Now, with second place mathematically safe however the summit slipping farther from view, motivation will probably be a valuable useful resource.
Injuries to Rodrigo Becao, Mert Hakan Yandaş, and Jayden Oosterwolde, plus the suspension of Çağlar Söyüncü, stretch an already embattled squad.
Sofyan Amrabat has recovered from damage however stays a query mark.
Filip Kostic, recent off suspension, returns, whereas Ismail Yüksek and Mert Müldür are anticipated to plug the defensive holes.
Yet all eyes flip to Başakşehir, who’re charging into this conflict with momentum and starvation.
The Grey Owls have clawed their approach to fifth place with 51 factors and are actually simply 4 factors behind Beşiktaş, the group occupying the ultimate European berth.
They’ve received 5 of their final six matches, rebounding from a humiliating 4-1 defeat to Göztepe with a convincing 4-2 victory over relegated Hatayspor.
At house, Başakşehir have rediscovered their swagger.
With 5 wins of their final seven league video games on the Fatih Terim Stadium – together with back-to-back triumphs over Konyaspor and Gaziantep – they’re poised to make it three in a row, a feat they’ve but to attain this season.
This match additionally presents an opportunity to even the rating with Fenerbahçe, who’ve received 5 of the final ten conferences between the edges in Başakşehir’s yard.
Head coach Çağdaş Atan, who has by no means overwhelmed Fenerbahçe in eight earlier makes an attempt throughout stints with Kayserispor, Alanyaspor, and now Başakşehir, is eyeing his breakthrough.
Atan has suffered seven losses and a draw in opposition to the Yellow Canaries however enters this conflict with arguably his finest shot at ending that barren run.
Başakşehir will probably be with out Ousseynou Ba resulting from damage, leaving Jerome Opoku to anchor the protection.
Midfielder Onur Ergün can be sidelined, seemingly paving the best way for Ivan Brnic to start out after an impactful cameo in opposition to Hatayspor.
Five gamers – Deniz Türüç, Muhammed Şengezer, Philippe Keny, Hamza Güreler, and Ba – sit on yellow card warnings, that means one other reserving would rule them out of subsequent week’s journey to Kasımpaşa.
Meanwhile, Fenerbahçe stay unbeaten of their final eight away matches, together with gritty wins over the likes of Adana Demirspor, Sivasspor, and Bodrum FK. But even that resilience may not be sufficient if their title bid has certainly run out of gasoline.
Source: www.dailysabah.com