Preview: Ankaragucu vs. Gaziantep – prediction, team news, lineups

The two teams meet on Saturday, just two places and three points apart in the Turkish Super Lig table Ankaraguchu Embrace the crisis club Gaziantep at the Eryman Stadium.

The hosts beat Konyaspor on Monday to move four points clear of the relegation zone, but Gaziantep are languishing dangerously in the bottom four courtesy of a horrific slide up the table, leading to widespread speculation over the manager’s future. Errol Bulut.

Match preview

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While a win in this match will give Gaziantep a chance to climb above Ankaragucu in the Super Lig table, both teams have had contrasting campaigns en route to their respective places.

The newly-promoted hosts are currently enjoying their highest position of the season, with a 1-0 win away to Konyaspor earlier this week lifting them to 11th and finally giving them some breathing room from the relegation zone they occupy. About halfway through the season so far.

Gaziantep, by contrast, moved into second place at the start of September, picking up 10 points from the top 12 on offer, but has been in free fall in danger of relegation ever since.

Indeed, three of their four wins this season have come in the first month of the campaign, with Errol Bulut’s men winning just one of their last 15 top-flight outings, picking up just nine points from 45 on offer during that time.

GFK make the trip to the Turkish capital without a win in nine league games and a crushing 2-1 home defeat to fellow strugglers Sivaspor last weekend now separates them from the drop zone with just one point.

If reports in Turkey are to be believed, it will be Bulut’s final match in charge, with widespread speculation that he was relieved of his duties on Thursday.

However, the club is yet to officially confirm the departure, only adding to the confusion on and off the field for a club whose boardroom is also undergoing significant change.

Ankara could not have hoped for a better opponent as they look forward to back-to-back league wins for the first time this season, but this will be their third straight win in all competitions after a penalty-shootout victory over Besiktas. Turkish Cup earlier this month.

Only one team outside the top six has won more league games Omar ErdoganThe men so far this term, they have also lost nine of their 19 outings – one more than their rivals and the fifth-worst record in the division.

Only rock-bottom Umraniyespor have won fewer games than Geziantep, while the basement dwellers are the only team to keep fewer clean sheets than GFK’s double figures.

Coincidentally, one of those came in the reverse fixture against Ankaragucu as Gaziantep picked up their first win of the campaign with a 1-0 win back in August.

Much has changed for both sides since then, but the visitors will no doubt be hoping that any repeat of that scoreline can spark a similar run to the one they enjoyed at the start of the campaign, averting a looming threat. Relegation to the second tier for the first time since 2018-19.

Turkish Super Lig form for Ankara:

Ankaraguku form (all competitions):

Gaziantep Turkish Super Lig form:

Gaziantep form (all competitions):

Team news

Hosts are welcoming Lamin Diac The midfielder returned to the match after serving his suspension due to an accumulation of yellow cards.

however, Sitki Imdat Prolonged absenteeism and Kevin Malkut He also missed due to injury.

Atakan Kankaya Was deputed at right-back to replace Malcuit last time out but was taken off at half-time, so Firatkan Uzum This time can come to start.

Ankara have offloaded some notable names so far this month, with the former Real Madrid man Jess Rodriguez And former Manchester United youngster Federico Macheda Both left the club.

Pepe Also leaving for pastures new, Erdogan has slightly fewer options than at the beginning of the month.

Gaziantep’s players are understood to have trained without manager Bulut on Thursday and their starting XI could change significantly depending on who takes the reins in Saturday’s match.

Regardless of the situation in the dugout, the visitors will be without either Abdulkadir Parmak And Ertugrul Ersoy By injury, with Aline Tosca The latter is likely to come.

Former Chelsea and Sunderland defender Sinful Zilobodzi He has been linked with a move away from the club this month but is expected to start at the back once again in this match.

Possible starting line-up for Ankara:
Akkan; Uzum, Mujakic, Radakovic, Xavier; Diack; Kilinc, Sigersi, Antalayali, Ktazhigiovanis; sow

Gaziantep Possible Starting Lineup:
Guenck; Kitsio, Toska, Zilobodzi, Pehlivan; Merkel, Jevtovic; Markovic, Maxim, Eskihellac; Figueredo

We say: 2-1 Gaziantep to Ankara

Gaziantep are a club in complete disarray at the moment, and their first win in 10 league games will be hard to come by for a team that has won three of their last four in all competitions.

Both sides have kept just five clean sheets in their season and so goals are likely at both ends, but the form book points firmly towards a home win despite only three points separating the two sides in the table.

For data analysis of most probable results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

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