The relegation battle in the Turkish Super Lig is already in full swing as Pendikspor and Samsunspor, two of the four worst teams in the league, meet at Siltas Yapi Pendik Stadyumu on Sunday afternoon.
Both teams had positive results against the same team in their last matches - Pendikspor defeated Istanbulspor 4-2 away from home last weekend, before Samsunspor overcame the same opposition 2-1 on Wednesday.
Match preview
After a disastrous start to the Turkish Super Lig, Pendikspor have experienced something of a renaissance in recent weeks, winning two out of a possible three matches in the league.
On the first matchday after the international break, they secured their first win of the season with a 2-1 victory over Konyaspor, and their second win came last time out with a 4-2 victory against Istanbulspor.
A heavy 5-0 defeat to one of the league leaders Fenerbahce was a reality check for Ivo Vieira's men, but the fact that they finally ended their three-month drought without a league win in recent weeks speaks volumes.
Prior to their first two wins of the season, Pendikspor had picked up just four points from their opening eight games and had only scored more than one goal in one of those matches, when they lost 3-2 to Sivasspor.
Surprisingly, the only two wins of the season have come away from home, as Pendikspor are still one of only two teams yet to win at home this season, having picked up just two points in five games.
Unfortunately, Pendikspor's improved results are not reflected in their defensive performance - the team is completely incapable of preventing goals and have already conceded 25 times in 11 games, which is the worst defensive performance in the league.
Coincidentally, Samsunspor have enjoyed an almost identical renaissance to Pendikspor, only in even less time; Markus Gisdol's men picked up two wins in the last week, beating a 10-man Hatayspor and Istanbulspor both by a 2-1 scoreline.
The triumph over Hatayspor last weekend was Samsunspor's first win of the season, which still leaves them bottom of the Super Lig table, but a win on Sunday could see them move out of the relegation zone if Istanbul Basaksehir fail to win their game.
The visitors were in an even worse position a few weeks ago, having suffered seven defeats in the space of eight games and picked up just a single point in that time courtesy of a 0-0 draw against Basaksehir.
In contrast to Pendikspor, the visitors have a disastrous away record this season - no wins in six games, just one draw and the second-worst away defensive record in the league with 12 goals conceded.
Team News
Pendikspor have a number of injury concerns ahead of this game, with five first-team players unavailable for the weekend.
The trio of Fredrik Midtsjo, Emeka Eze and Koka have played an important role in the early months, but their potential replacements Ibrahim Akdag, Abdoulay Diaby and Erencan Yardimci should have enough quality to replace their injured teammates.
The trio of Yardimci, Oscar Romero and Welinton have provided Pendikspor with some fine moments this season - Yardimci and Romero are the team's joint top scorers with three goals, followed by Welinton with two.
As far as the visitors are concerned, Taylan Antalyali, Bedirhan Cetin and Moryke Fofana are not available, but even if they were fit to play, it is highly unlikely that head coach Gisdol would include the latter two in his starting XI.
Samsunspor's best strikers are Youssef Ait Bennasser, Soner Aydogdu and Ercan Kara, who have scored three goals between them.
Pendikspor possible starting lineup:
Canpolat; Ozgenc, Sulungoz, Welinton, Sequeira; Akdag, Lusamba, Akbunar, Cekici, Diaby; Yardimci
Samsunspor possible starting lineup:
Kocuk; Schindler, Cift, Satka, Van Drongelen; Aydogdu, Bennasser, Ozbaskici; Kilinc, Laura, Fofana
We say: Pendikspor 1-1 Samsunspor
Both teams have stepped up a gear in terms of performance levels in recent weeks, therefore it is really difficult to predict the winner on Sunday.
Pendikspor are still winless at home, while Samsunspor have yet to win away from home, making the outcome of Sunday's game even more uncertain.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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