After losing for the first time in four matches under new manager Sami Ugurlu, Alanyaspor will hope to avoid consecutive defeats when they host Gaziantep in the Turkish Super Lig on Saturday.
The hosts drew twice and won once in three matches across all competitions, before losing 2-0 away at Kayserispor last time out, leaving them stuck in the relegation zone.
Match preview
Alanyaspor have endured a poor start to the season, leaving them 16th in the standings having picked up 14 points from the same number of matches, one point adrift of safety.
This poor start led to the resignation of Fatih Tekke, with Ugurlu taking over on November 7, bringing an inspired change which led to an unbeaten streak in his first three matches across all competitions, with a draw against Samsunspor in his first game preceding wins against Trabzonspor in the Super Lig, and Fethiyespor in the Turkish Cup.
However, the fine start to Ugurlu's reign ended with the defeat to Kayserispor, and Alanyaspor will now have to pick things up when they take on Gaziantep, a team that they have historically dominated.
The Alanya-based side have won 12 of 16 previous encounters against the visitors across all competitions, but while the home side won the most recent meeting between them, they lost this fixture the last time they played as hosts.
However, having won their two home matches under Ugurlu, Alanyaspor will head into Saturday's fixture with an opportunity to win three competitive home matches in a row for the first time since a three-match winning streak at home between December 2022 and January 2023.
Gaziantep will head into this clash hoping to end a six-match winless streak on the road with one draw and five defeats, including in their last two.
After a poor start to the campaign, GFK have picked things up in recent weeks, winning three of their last five league matches, compared to two in their opening nine matches, though four of their five league wins have come on home soil.
In their most recent league game, Selcuk Inan's side managed to secure a 1-0 victory over Caykur Rizespor thanks to a fourth-minute own goal from opposition goalkeeper Ivo Grbic, a win that saw them climb to 10th place, taking them further away from the drop zone.
With the two teams directly above them playing against each other on the same day, a win here could take GFK as high as eighth, and having recorded their maiden win away at Alanyaspor last season, the visitors can be confident of achieving this.
Team News
Alanyaspor could remain without defender Furkan Bayir, who is looking to recover in time from an ankle injury that has kept him out for the last couple of weeks.
However, the hosts will welcome back Yusuf Ozdemir and Nuno Lima who were suspended for the loss against Kayserispor due to a red card for the former and accumulated cautions for the latter.
The goals have been evenly distributed under Ugurlu, with seven different scorers so far, but Sergio Cordova, who scored the first goal of the manager's reign, is still the man to watch.
Gaziantep will remain without left-back Godfrey Stephen, who is currently sidelined with a leg injury, and no return date set.
Badou Ndiaye is suspended for this clash, with the midfielder reaching the yellow card threshold after his caution against Rizespor.
Alanyaspor possible starting lineup:
Taskiran; Balkovec, Aliti, Lima, Hadergjonaj; Richard, Makouta; Augusto, Janvier, Karaca; Cordova
Gaziantep possible starting lineup:
Dioudis; M'Bakata, Kizildag, Viana, Eskihellac; Maxim, Ozcicek; Lungoyi, Dervisoglu, Sorescu; Okereke
We say: Alanyaspor 1-1 Gaziantep
Alanyaspor seem to find better gear on home soil under the new manager, and they have a dominant record in this fixture. However, Gaziantep have shown resilience in recent weeks, and they won on this ground last year which could fuel their belief.
Considering these factors, we believe that both teams have enough to cancel each other out, which is why we are predicting a stalemate.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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