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Tuesday, March 31, 2009

TERIM AND HIS BOYS ARE CONFIDENT THAT THEY COULD WIN AGAINST SPAIN IN TURKEY


Turkey's coach Fatih Terim attends a news conference in Istanbul, March 31, 2009. Turkey will face Spain in the upcoming 2010 World Cup qualifier match on April 1, 2009.Photo by,REUTERS/Stringer

IT IS A MUST WIN MATCH FOR FATIH TERIM AND HIS BOYS....

Let's just remember, some of the things that Fatih Terim said before the first match in Spain...

"Fatih Terim: "Spain will go as first place and Turkey will go as second place to World Cup"

"Fatih Terim Promises Turkey Will Play To Win In Spain ......"

Well, Turkey did not beat Spain in Spain.....

And, Fatih Terim's promise as far as going to World Cup 2010 to the Turkish soccer fans is in jeopardy....

Besides Turkey there is Bosnia and Belgium iS fighting for the second place now..

After losing to Spain , Bosnia captured the second place from Fatih Terim and his boys.

That is why this is a must win match for Turkey if they want to at least put up a fight for second place in the Group 5 .

Loss of points in Ali Samiyen Stadium on Wednesday , could spell bad times for Fatih Terim.

At the press conference on Tuesday, Fatih Terim said "I will have 11 brave hearts on the pitch, and if it becomes 23,000 brave hearts with the fans, that will be all the more efficient," he said. "That’s how we can win." Terim went on ,being the home team was important in this game.

"Patience and excitement are crucial parts of football," he said. "My friends in the stands should provide the excitement to my friends on the pitch."

"It is important that the players on the pitch and off the pitch create a synergy,"


So, it is put up or shut up time, for Fatih Terim and his boys, now!....

If they want to give Turkish Football fans, joy and pride, this is the match ,they have to do it.

It will be really good one too..
Because, they will end Spain's thirty match winning streak.....

And whole world will be talking about Terim and Turkish Football(soccer)one more time again.

If they can't, they will miss the chance to capture the second place...

If Bosnia wins on Wednesday , and Turkish National team lose , it will be four point gap between Bosnia and Fatih Terim's boys....


AHMET TURGUT

Casillas: "Winning tomorrow in Turkey is set foot in South Africa"

The Spanish team captain, Iker Casillas, stressed the importance of drawing the three points in the match tomorrow at the Ali Sami Yen stadium in Turkey, valid for the 2010 World because doing this is "putting one foot in South Africa and leave the show on track. "

"Probably in the morning is the most important thing we have left, because they get the three points is to put one foot in the World South Africa the other day and we won a difficult match and we are where we wanted because we had to win at home and not to lose here, so if we go out with the victory we must pass on track.

In case of victory, the 'Bulls' will live a final classification stage something very pleasant in contrast to the previous apreturas appointments. "To remember the World Japan and Korea, it appears that we are better. If we leave the track before the break until September, would be very nice to concentrate on the Confederations Cup and rest until next season," he said.

On the environmental pressure that can undergo selection in the morning Ali Sami Yen, Casillas is aware that "you can stand and give them a lot more pressure than if it were a team because it's her choice."

In this regard, Madrid recalled its canterano experiences at the stadium in Istanbul on April 3, 2001, when measured with the Galatasaray Real Madrid: "I have experience when we played there in the quarterfinals of Champions League , rose to a 0-2 for us, and although they spent in the Bernabeu, the fans made them grow and make good Galatasaray put us things complicated. "

Fernando Torres:"Turkey will be twice as difficult".

Fernando Torres has warned Spain their second World Cup qualifier against Turkey will be "twice as difficult".

The European Champions triumphed 1-0 at the Bernabeu, with Gerard Pique notching the only goal of a closely-fought contest in the 60th minute to leave them with one foot in the finals.

Spain are keen to maintain their 100% record in Group Five, but Torres knows Turkey will be equally as eager to avenge the weekend's defeat.

"We always go into games with humility but each time our opponents make it more difficult for us because everyone wants to beat the champions," he said.

"If it cost us so much to win at home, in front of our fans, Wednesday will be twice as difficult.

"The game will be very similar to the other day and we have already been warned that Turkey are a great international side, with great players and that they have a lot of desire to beat us."

The triumph extended Spain's unbeaten run to 30 matches - of which 28 have been ended in victory - and also saw them move six points clear of second-placed Bosnia-Herzegovina.

With the qualifiers at the halfway stage Spain are very much on course for South Africa, but Torres has urged his team-mates not to take anything for granted.

"Winning there would not mathematically qualify us," continued the Liverpool striker. "If we win we will have taken a big step but in football everything can change from one day to the next.

"By winning we will continue having the incentive to get new victories, to continue beating records and keep our run of results.

"We have other reasons to win, not just to qualify."

The past year has seen a turnaround in Spain's fortunes as they stormed to the Euro 2008 title and top spot in the FIFA world rankings for the first time ever.

It is a nice change for fans used to La Roja failing to fulfil expectations time and time again, crashing out of tournaments prematurely, and Torres admits it makes a nice change for the players too.

"It's a pleasure to see the leap in quality that the team have done," he said. "Before we suffered enough embarrassments and difficult periods in qualifying.

"We suffered a lot but the team has developed. It has become a great international side and we hope that it will be like this for a long time.

"What we have to do now is enjoy it."

Source:wires

Monday, March 30, 2009

ARDA TURAN :I AM NOT A STAR

Arda Turhan gave a recent interview to FIFA.com web site and he talked about the Turkish football in general and him self.

Here is the interwiew,,,,,,,

FIFA.com: Mr Turan, are you Turkish football's latest superstar? Arda Turan: I'm not a star, just a good footballer and, most importantly, I'm a team player. I always give 100 per cent and I'm constantly trying to improve my game.

Do you want to stay in Turkey or would you like to play abroad one day?
I'm definitely planning on playing in one of Europe's top leagues at some point. It would be a great chance for me to represent my country and further my career.

Are there any teams in particular who you would like to play for?
Liverpool or Juventus would be great.

What is so special about the Turkish league and what is it like playing for an historic club like Galatasaray?

It's a fascinating league, but sometimes the pitches we have to play on aren't great and that doesn't make things easy. At Galatasaray, winning the title is always a must, and being part of a team like that means that you are constantly under pressure to succeed and have to possess a will to win.

The people in Turkey are extremely passionate and would never give up on the team they love.
Turan on the Turkish fans


The Turkish fans always create a fantastic atmosphere in the stadiums. Why is that?
The people in Turkey are extremely passionate and would never give up on the team they love.

Turkey currently lie in third place behind Spain and Bosnia-Herzegovina. You've played in all five qualifying matches so far and scored against the latter. What does it mean to you to play for your country?
I'm a very patriotic person and have plenty to thank my country for, so pulling on the national strip means a lot to me. It's a great honour.

What would it mean to you to play in your first ever FIFA World Cup?
All the greatest footballers in history made their names at the World Cup, so I think it would be a big opportunity for me.

Turkey did not qualify for Germany 2006 but then made it to the semi-finals of UEFA EURO 2008. If they do manage to qualify for South Africa 2010, what do you think they can realistically hope to achieve?
Our minimum goal has to be to survive the group stage. After that, provided we take each game as it comes, we have every chance of improving on our semi-final finish in 2002.

At EURO 2008, Turkey bowed out at the last-four stage to Germany after Philipp Lahm scored a late winner in a tight encounter. Was that the worst moment of your career so far?
The worst moment of my career was when I got shown a yellow card in the quarter-final, leaving me to watch the Germany game from the stands.

Turkey are currently 11th in the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Rankings. What is holding the team back from moving further up the list?
The more experience we gain, the more we will improve.

Do you have a role model and who would you like to swap shirts with?
Maradona is my favourite player because he was just so talented and I also admire Zinedine Zidane for his skills on the pitch. From today's players, it would be nice to swap shirts with Lionel Messi.


Who is the best midfielder in the world at the moment?
Kaka.

Do you have any plans for life after football?
I would stay involved in football in some capacity, probably in the coaching side of things.

What are your goals for the rest of 2009?
To retain the league title with Galatasaray and win as many games as I can with the national team.

Source: fifa.com

Saturday, March 28, 2009

GOOD START BUT BAD FINISH FOR TURKEY

First twenty minutes of the match Turkish National team had more chances against Spain.

They out played Spanish team in the first half but went down with a fluke goal in the second half.

Turkish National team just ran out of gas in th second half.

They could not do any set plays from back field and midfield.

And The players, who ran out their hearts out, in the first half of the match, was just tired.

Fatih Terim and Turkish National team not only loss the match, they lost their second place to Bosnia after Bosnia won in away match against Belgium.

Getting back to the match, In the sixth minute Turkish National team captain Nihat Kahveci fired a low shot just wide, after that Senturk brought a diving save out of Spain goalkeeper Iker Casillas.

Casillias was the day, savior for Spanish team.

Just before the half time Fernando Torres for Spain tested Turkish keeper Volkan Demirel from the edge of the area.

In the closing minute of the first half Arda Turan had a chance but he could not control the ball in the box and Casillias rushed out and got the ball .


As I said ,Fatih Terim's boys looked sluggish in the start of second half...

In the 61th minute the only goal of the match came.Xavi free-kick went to Sergio Ramos at the far post. The ball rebounded off Ramos' leg and bounced across goal to Pique, who forced home the rebound.

On this play, Tuncay Sanli's and keeper Volkan Demirel's timing was off..

Tuncay Sanli made a huge mistake as far as going up to head the ball and keeper Volkan Demirel did not come out of his goal line to get the ball.


After the match Fatih Terim speaking at the press conference said, "Spain deserved to win.After the goal, they played better. I congratulate them."

He also said , "Wednsday match will be different.Today we had three great chances. We did not take them, but it is clear that we can beat Spain."

Turkey host Spain in Istanbul on Wednesday while Second place Bosnia will be at home against Belgium.

So, the second place that Fatih Terim was talking about earlier in the week...

Saying that Spain will be first and Turkey will finish in second place in Group 5, might just be a empty promise!..

If Fatih Terim's boys loss on wednsday and Bosnia wins against Belgium, you could just kiss good bye to second place too..

Spain is perfect with 15 points on top while Bosnia sit on second with nine and Turkey one point behind on third. the Belgium has seven points.

AHMET TURGUT


Spain 1 - 0 Turkey Highlights

More football highlights at fcfootballblog.com

NIHAT AND SEMIH BOTH WILL START FOR TURKEY

The unpredictable man, coach of Turkish national team shocked every one again..

He will start Nihat Kahveci and Semih Senturk against Spain .

Is this a gamble or going all-out?...

We will find out....

We don't know if he is going to have two man at the top or only one.

Nihat also will be the captain of Turkey against Spain..

At the press conferense Fatih Terim said "There should be no doubt that it will be a hard match and we will be facing an extremely tough opponent,“The Turkish team goes out to win whatever the conditions and wherever we are playing,” he added. “We can win or lose but we will never abandon that philosophy.”

Here is the Fatih Terim's Turkish National team starting eleven.......

Volkan Demirle , Gökhan Gönül, Emre Aşık, Hakan Balta, İbrahim Üzülmez, Tuncay, Aurelio, Emre Belözoğlu, Arda Turan, Semih Senturk, Nihat Kahveci

On the other hand Spain also anounced startng eleven too

Here is the Spain starting line up.....

Iker Casillas, Joan Capdevila, Gerard Pique, Sergio Ramos, Raul Albiol, Xabier Alonso, Marcos Senna Da Silva, Xavi Hernandez, Santiago Cazorla, David Villa, Fernando Torres

Friday, March 27, 2009

Spain Is Ready,Is Fatih Terim's Turkey Ready?...



It is probably the most important and most exciting match on Saturday on the road to the 2010 World Cup.

Spain says they are ready for the big showdown with Fatih Terim's Turkish National Team, back-to-back.

Spain is perfect in their last 29 matches. They sit on top of group five in the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification with 12 points in four matches. The Turkish National team is in second place with eight points.

Spanish Bulls coach Del Bosque, a former coach of Besiktas team, who was called by Turkish media as "Butcher of Yenikoy," when he was coaching in Istanbul, knows Turkish football and the players very well.

For Spain, striker David Villa, midfielders Xavi and David Silva, and defenders Sergio Ramos and Gerard Pique have all recovered from minor injuries and will be available to play against Turkish National Team.


Star studed Bulls of Spain, who have five players from the Liverpool team, want to win these two matches.

What about Fatih Terim's Turkey? Is he worrying about his player's circumstances? Most of his players are from Fenerbahce and Galatasaray.

Both teams are having a poor season in the Turkish Tirkcell Super League. This is a nightmare for Fatih Terim, but it's not the only problem.The Turkish National Team has a huge problem with defense.

I think this will be the weakest link for Terim and Turkish National team. Midfield and the keeper position look set in Fatih Terim's mind for Saturday .

The other problem area is the forwards.

Will it be Semih Senturk or Nihat Kahveci?

Will he play 4-3-3 or 4-5-1?

These are the questions, I believe, Terim asks himself when he goes to bed.

Fatih Terim is very good at giving players an extra push with his unusual style of coaching from the sideline and before the big matches. He knows this is a big match for him and the Turkish National team.

He even tells his players, "If we beat world's number one team Spain in their own house, every one in the world will talk about us." Last time Turkey beat Spain was in 1945, and Turkey won the match 1-0.

So, nothing is impossible.

Spain is the Europe's and World's best team. But, "comeback kings" of Europe, who finish third in the last European competition. Turkey playing with their soul and pride could pull a upset score in Spain on Saturday

AHMET TURGUT

Sivasspor's Secret to Success..."Lack of nightlife "


Sivasspor Coach Bulent Uygun

These words came out of the mouth of Sivasspor Rookie coach Bulent Uygun.

If you remember , just about ten days ago, this is the man who demolished the sidelined booth after getting out of the control on the sideline match against Ankaraspor.

But, His team sits on top of the Turkcell Super League ,ahead of Istanbul Giants...

Bulent Uygun who was invited to panel in his home town Sakarya...

There, he made some interesting remarks about the success of Sivasspor.

He said,their success is partly due to the lack of nightlife in Sivas.

"There are only a few shops where my players can buy drinks but I'm in contact with the shop owners, so I am informed as soon as one of my players buy drinks and I warn him."

The city of Sivas in the middle of Anatolia and Sivasspor are top of the Turkish Turkcell Super League with 50 points, ahead of Besiktas who has 49 points.

Sivasspor fans are dreaming that the Sivaspor club could break Istanbul's 24-year stranglehold on the league title.

TEAMMATES AGAINST EACH OTHER IN SPAIN V TURKEY MATCH


Photo courtesy of www.as.com

Mehmet Aurelio and Juanito ,they both play for Betis team in the Spanish league but, on Saturday, when Spain host Turkey in Madrid thy will be playing against each other.

Mehmet Aurello who is Brazilian and became a Turkish Citizen to play on the Turkish National team and he is the brain of the Turkish National team.

On the other hand his teammate Juanito, play for Spanish team and he is also driving for the Bulls on the defense.

The Spanish newspaper AS , has done a great interview in Spanish , with them.

It is very good article and I translated for our readers, that interview...

Here is the Interview...


AS: Did you know that in 1954 Turkey abolished Spain Switzerland World Cup 1954 draw? A boy named Franco Gemma was innocent hand pulling the ball which decided the tie. Then there were no penalties.
Mehmet Aurelio: Really? I did not know anything. Very strong! By draw! That's not happening now, if only because I hope that the two are in the next World Cup.


Juanito: Yes it did. It is a very famous case. It is very hard to remove you, but if above is by lot had to be very hard.

Which player is the opponent who most fear?

Mehmet.A: I because they are all great footballers. But if I have to say a name, Torres and Villa. They are two killers!

J: Turkey has shown great progress in recent years. He has very good players. Care must be taken to Nihat, but also has a Sentunk, Tuncay, Serco Yildren, Emre You know what? I'd rather have a partner who as Mehmet Aurelio as a rival, is a magnificent player.

What do you think about the opponent?

J: Turkey is among the ten best teams in the world is not by chance. In the Euro in Austria and Switzerland were eliminated Germany in the semi, but were quite unlucky. They do a great job and are very organized but perhaps her back is the weakest.

Mehmet.A: Spain is now the best selection of the world. Better than Brazil? Hard to say but because it now for over two years without winning and losing all his rivals.

Are you happy to be with his selection?

Mehmet.A: Absolutely! I was born in Brazil. But I was seven years in Turkey. It is a great country and changed my name to that of Marco Mehmet Aurelio. Say it was a Turkish conqueror.

J: I am pleased. I could play 25 games is very good and also I've been on many calls. It's a privilege to be agreed on a!

I do not deny that the game is very interesting.

Mehmet.A: Absolutely! It will be a spectacle.

J: What is more unusual is going to have to do is to play two games so often.

Spain has summoned Güiza and Turkey's Nihat. What do they have to say?
MA: Güiza is doing very well at Fenerbahçe. Are happy with it.

How about the environment that you can live in the Santiago Bernabéu?

Mehmet.A: It's a magnificent stadium. Is filled. There will be a great atmosphere like our field back in the game. Our fans are extraordinary. For his way of encouraging very similar to Brazil.

J: Playing in the Bernabéu is a pleasure because it is one of the great world stage.

In Spain, Turkey and the people are with their selections?

Mehmet.A: We are greatly encouraged. They are very warm and live it with great passion.

J: The selection has always had great pull, but since the Euro rioja, people are turning even more.

What do you think that Raul is not called?

Mehmet .A: It's a great player and is making many goals, but that Spain has many good forwards. I imagine that the Spanish coach will not be an easy decision to choose when you have so many good players.

J: It is a decision of the selector. ¿Debate? I think I must be more tired for this debate is the Raúl.

Who will win?

Both at once: "We classify them and us both to the World."

Source: www.as.com

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Turkish Coach in Canadian Soccer League..



Ugur Cimen who coached in Konyaspor team will be coaching in the Canadian professional soccer league.

North York Astros from Canadian Soccer league signed Ugur Cimen.


According to Leagues web site Ugur Cimen, 34, a coach at various levels with Konya Spor from Turkish Super League from 1995 until January of this year, has been with Konya’s first team since 2003. He arrived in Toronto recently with his wife, Tugba and one-year old son, Kagan and came to terms with the Astros early March.

North York Astros’ general manager Bruno Ierullo spoke highly of his new coach. “We are delighted to have Ugur in the Astros organization. He brings a wealth of experience and we are confident he will raise our level of the last two years even higher.”

Ugur Cimen becomes the ninth coach in North York’s 19th year history and Ierullo considers the club may now be well positioned for a top placing in the CSL’s National Division.

Ugur Cimen's North York Astros team will open the training camp on April 1th.

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

FATIH TERIM: "IF WE LOSE ,IT IS NOT THE END OF THE WORLD"



Turkish National team is in Spain.

Fatih Terim and his boys landed in Madrid Yesterday and a half hours late because of a problem at the airport in Istanbul.

Gokhan Zan and Servet, the holders of two in three of the four matches so far, have not traveled, while Altintop and Gokhan Gonul, two of which may be right, are certainly due to physical problems. Also the tip Gokhan Unal.

This will make Fatih Terim to the some changes in the line up again as he turns to his many defensive line during the week of training that began yesterday in Valdebebas with a smooth meeting. "I know that Spain has played soccer and some possible absences such as Iniesta, but should not affect them much because all their players are very good. However, we can do much more harm our injured, as are all the same plot and there is much more choice, "he said.

Given this background, Ibrahim Kas who plays in Spain seems to have a safe and secured place against and Sedat Bayrak from Sivasspor Turkish Turkcell Super league top team and the old timer former Fenerbahce and current Galatasaray player Emre Asik will also be on the back field for sure.



Terim is aware that winning the number one FIFA ranking is an expensive task for any selection. And much more at the Bernabeu, "It is one of the strongest teams in the world and its clubs are also a good level in Europe, unlike ours. We must make a very full in the center of the field to abort. My Players will have to press and run. "

We present a game with a lot of tension and quality, with two good teams and a World Cup at stake. "We are keen to play against Spain the Euro. Now is our chance. It will be difficult, obviously, but if we lose these two games will not be the end of the world. It is time," Terim said.

Sunday, March 22, 2009

The Power Struggle cost Galatasaray another loss

Rookie Galatasaray coach Bulent Korkmaz did not play Lincoln again!

Just Think, you are gone in the UEFA Cup with coaches ego this past Thursday in your own "Hell Town"

You have to give, all what you got to the league action...



With all its major opponents losing points, Galatasaray was looking forward to getting a grip on the Turkish Turkcell Super league as it is now their only lane.



Fenerbahce had lost to Bursa on Friday, and on Saturday the two top teams Sivasspor and Besiktas- had played against each other. The game had ended with the most favourable score to Galatasaray; a draw.



With Trabzonspor, losing to Gaziantepspor 3-2, Galatasaray had the chance to make a total of 10 points advantage.



However, Galatasaray, mostly thanks to its newly appointed rookie coach Bülent Korkmaz, was not able to use the chance, and ended up falling behind Sivasspor and Besiktas, who each had gained one point.



Eskisehir side, which played with 10 players from 54th on, managed to take the lead at 69 when Youla made good use of Doğa's pass.



Korkmaz was booed when he replaced Harry Kewel, with Mehmet Güven at 76.

SIVASSPOR HOLDS ON

Sivasspor took the lead at the 50th minute of the game with Herve Tum’s header but Besiktas was not

late to respond when Tello leveled the game six minutes after, with Yusuf’s pass.



The top two teams in the Turkcell Super League kept their positions after this draw.



In another game of the day, Gaziantepspor defeated Trabzonspor 3-2 at home, causing its opponent to lose for the third time within the last four weeks. Trabzonspor remained at 46 points after this defeat.

Here are the scores and games to be played in the 25th week of the Turkcell Super League;

Hacettepe 1-2 Antalyaspor

İstanbul BB 2-0 Konyaspor

Kayserispor 2- 0 MKE Ankaragucu

Kocaelispor 3-1 Ankaraspor

Gaziantepspor 3 - 2 Trabzonspor

Sivasspor 1 - 1 Besi

Genclerbirliği 0 - 0 Denizlispor

Galatasaray 0-1 Eskisehirspor

Saturday, March 21, 2009

FATIH TERIM PICKS HIS ROSTER AGAINST SPAIN


Turkey and Spain will play two World Cup 2010 qualifiers games.
Turkish and Spanish national soccer teams will play two matches on March 28 and April 1 in the World Cup 2010 Qualifying Round.

Turkish National soccer team coach Fatih Terim, picked his roster for the both matches against Spain.

Goal Keepers-
1-VOLKAN DEMİREL FENERBAHÇE
2-RÜŞTÜ REÇBER BEŞİKTAŞ
3-UFUK CEYLAN MANİSASPOR

Defense-
4-GÖKHAN GÖNÜL FENERBAHÇE
5-SABRİ SARIOĞLU GALATASARAY .
6-EMRE AŞIK GALATASARAY
7-SEDAT BAYRAK SİVASSPOR
8-İBRAHİM KAŞ GETAFE CF
9-EREN GÜNGÖR KAYSERİSPOR
10-HAKAN KADİR BALTA GALATASARAY
11-İBRAHİM ÜZÜLMEZ BEŞİKTAŞ

Midfielders-
12-HAMİT ALTINTOP BAYERN MÜNİCHEN
13-KAZIM KAZIM FENERBAHÇE
14-AYHAN AKMAN GALATASARAY
15-MEHMET AURELIO REAL BETIS BALOMPIE
16- EMRE BELÖZOĞLU FENERBAHÇE
17-NURİ ŞAHİN BORUSSIA DORTMUND
18-MEVLUT ERDİNÇ FC SOCHAUX
19-TUNCAY ŞANLI MIDDLESBROUGH FC
20-ARDA TURAN GALATASARAY

Attackers-
21-NİHAT KAHVECİ VILLARREAL CF
22- BATUHAN KARADENİZ ESKİŞEHİRSPOR
23- SEMİH ŞENTÜRK FENERBAHÇE
24-GÖKHAN ÜNAL TRABZONSPOR
25-SERCAN YILDIRIM BURSASPOR


Turkish National team will leave for Spain on Monday, and train for the match in Madrid till Saturday.

Turkish national soccer team's coach Fatih Terim is expected to hold a press conference before the final training of the team on Friday.

The first leg will begin at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium at 11 p.m. Turkish local time on March 28, Saturday. The Turkish team will return to Turkey after the match.


The Turkish team will start training for the second leg game on March 29, Sunday. Coach Fatih Terim will hold a press conference at the Swiss Hotel in Istanbul on March 31, Tuesday.

Turkey and Spain will play their second match at the Ali Sami Yen Stadium in Istanbul on April 1, Wednesday.

Michael Riley of Britain will be the referee of the game to begin at 9 p.m. Turkish local time.

The Spanish team is expected to arrive in Istanbul for the second match on March 30, Monday.

Turkey is in the Group 5 together with Spain, Belgium, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Estonia and Armenia.

Spain is at the top of the group with 12 points, and Turkey follows this country with 8 points. Belgium comes the third with 7, Bosnia-Herzegovina is in the fourth place with 6 points, Estonia is the fifth with 1 point and Armenia is in the last place in the group.

Friday, March 20, 2009

FENERBAHCE GOES DOWN IN BURSA

Widely-criticized for failing to score goals, Spanish striker Daniel Güiza scored his fifth goal in the League this year and gave his team the lead at the very beginning of the game, at fourth minute.

Being unable to keep the score until the end of the game, Fenerbahce could not stop Tuna Uzumcu of the hosting team score at the 86th minute of the game, which was the harbinger of a worse scenario for the visiting team.

Sercan of the hosting team was tackled by Wederson of Fenerbahce and Bursaspor won a penalty at the third minute of the extra time. Bursaspor’s goalkeeper Ivankov, a player well known for his penalty goals, scored the second on behalf of his team from the penalty kick and Bursaspor won the game from coming behind.

Fenerbahce remained at 44 points after this score.

In Saturday’s action, leader Sivasspor and its follower Besiktas will face in Sivas.

BURSASPOR 2-1 FENERBAHCE
4' [0 : 1] Daniel Guiza

86' [1 : 1] Tuna Uzumcu

90' [2 : 1] D. Ivankov (pen.)

THE DREAM IS OVER FOR GALATASARAY

Let me say this first, how could you lose a match, when you are winning by two goals?

Easily when you have a coach who has never managed in the big leagues.

He might have played in big matches but, coaching, is far different from playing.

I have no question about Bulent Korkmaz's past as a player, but I have a lot of questions about his coaching ability.

He shocked everyone when he played Harry Kewell in defence and replaced Brazilian International Lincoln in both legs.

I think the power struggle between Lincoln and Bulent Korkmaz cost Galatasaray their place in the next round of the UEFA Cup.

After going two goals ahead, Galatasay rolled over and died after the 55th minute of the match.

Bulent Korkmaz should have made some changes when he was two goals up, not when Hamburg.

Instead, Hamburg came from behind to knock Galatasaray out of the UEFA Cup at the Ali Sami Yen Stadium, winning 3-2 on the night and 4-3 on aggregate.

Jose Paolo Guerrero was the hero for the Bundesliga side, striking twice to cancel out the home side's lead, established with a Harry Kewell penalty in the 42nd minute and Milan Baros' goal three minutes into the second half.

Guerrero struck his first in the 57th minute and added a second moments later, before Ivica Olic added a third late on to seal Hamburg's passage to the last eight, where they join fellow German side Werder Bremen.

Hamburg made a bright start with the first chance of the game falling to their striker Olic, whose dipping header was tipped over by Morgan de Sanctis.

At the other end, Joris Mathijsen was enjoying a physical battle with Baros as the Hamburg defense held firm against the home side's first advances.

Galatasaray began to increase the pressure with Sabri Sarioglu hitting two shots over the crossbar.

The home side's persistence was rewarded with the opening goal in the 42nd minute. It was scored from the penalty spot by stand-in central defender Kewell, after Milan Baros was sliced down by Jerome Boateng just inside the area.

The goal did not alter the fact that Hamburg had to score, but now they knew that just one goal would not be enough to put them through.

In the 48th minute Arda Turan poked the ball into the path of Baros, who neatly lifted it over the onrushing Frank Rost and into the back of the net.

Hamburg's reaction was exemplary, with two goals in as many minutes from Guerrero bringing them level—and giving them the advantage on away goals.

His first in the 57th minute came out of nothing, with the Peruvian forward trying his luck from long range and beating De Sanctis with a fine shot into the top left-hand corner.

And moments later, he went on a mazy run, leaving three Gala defenders trailing in his wake, before firing a venomous shot past De Sanctis.

Olic then sealed the win, lobbing De Sanctis after reaching David Jarolim's through ball in the last minute.

That was the end of Galatasaray's involvement in the UEFA Cup this season.

They dreamed about playing the final in the Sukru Saracoglu stadium, the home of their great rivals Fenerbahce, but that dream ended on their own pitch.

Lastly, After the first leg match, some of the absurd Turkish newspapers said Galatasaray had Hamburger in Germany.

I wonder, what they will say now. Like the Galatasaray team it seems they had forgotten about the second leg.

Thursday, March 19, 2009

RAUL MIGHT NOT PLAY AGAINST TURKEY!

According to reportS from Spain, there is a lot of controversy about Spanish national team soccer coach Del Bosque will not call up Spanish International and one of the best players in the world Raul Gonzalez to Spanish National team squad against Turkey.

Spain and Turkey will play double header later in this month and beginning of the April.


According to El Mundo Deportivo ,Del Bosque want to stick to players that gave him the success so far...

The former Besiktas coach and current Spanish National team coach Del Bosque , wants to use Fernando Torres, David Villa and Fernando Llorente and Fenerbahce's Dani Guiza as a striker against Turkey.


While Raul is having one of the best season with Real Madris, Guiza has his scoring problems in Fenerbahce team.



On the other hand, Raul said ,he would love to be back at the national team, but he's not desperate; he even said all the controversy around the affair is such a bore.


This is in away good news for Fatih Terim and Turkish National team before the next week match....

But, Turkish National team coach Fatih Terim has more problems on his hands...

A lot of players are injured and can not make up his mind as far as choosing his players too!...


AHMET TURGUT

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

IT WILL NOT BE EASY FOR GALATASARAY

The second leg match of the UEFA Cup round of 16 will take place in one of the noisiest stadiums in the world; The Ali Samiyen Stadium.

This is were Galatasaray fans say: "Welcome To Hell."

Well, The 12th man might be ready for this match but the Galatasaray team is like a nursing home.

They have a lot of players missing through injury and suspension.

In defence they will be without Servet, Emre Gungor, and Emre Asik, who is serving a suspension for Galatasaray's encounter with Hamburg.

The latest news for the Galatasaray team is that Arda, who was injured in the league match against Trabzonspor, is not likely to play in this match.

It is likely that rookie coach Bulent Korkmaz will use Mehmet Topal in midfield alongside Lincoln.

Bulent Korkmaz punished Lincoln after the sideline incident in the first match against German team by not playing him against Trabzonspor in the Turkcell Super League match last weekend.

After the match, he said he was saving Lincoln for the Hamburg match.

It is nonsense, in my opinion.

Why would you save the player that you took out of the first match?

On the other hand, the Hamburg team is not at full strength and will be without Mladen Petric, Bastian Reinhardt, Thimothée Atouba, Romeo Castelen, and Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting.

Hamburg coach Martin Jol, said: "It will be hard to win in Istanbul, but it is doable."

So, Galatasaray might have the edge in this match, but don't count out Hamburg just yet.

Bulent Korkmaz said at the press conference that, although they are missing a lot of players, as long as they play like a team, they should win this match.

He said, they want to play in the final at Fenerbahce's Sukru Saracoglu Stadium.

Korkmaz went on to say "we have to show we are a total team in this match."


AHMET TURGUT

Monday, March 16, 2009

TRABZONSPOR AND GALATASARAY SHARE THE POINTS

Trabzonspor and Galatasaray battled out a 2-2 draw in the last match of the weekend on Sunday.

Alanzinho scored for Trabzonspor in the seventh minute but Galatasaray answered back with strikes from Milan Baros (19) and Arda Turan (66).

It looked liked Galatasaray was going to finish the match with a win , but Yaser Yildiz, who came in to the match as a sub, was sent off in the 83rd minute .

Ten man Galtasaray, could not hold on to the lead and just four minutes after coming off the bench - before Gustavo Colman equalized for Trabzonspor.

Trabzonspor remain two places and two points better than Galatasaray.
Galtasaray rookie coach Bulent Kormaz ,did not play Brazilian Lincoln in this match.


After the match he said he was saving Lincoln for the UEFA Cup match agains Hamburg .....

Elsewhere on Sunday, Kayserispor overcame the dismissal of Delio Toledo to claim a 2-2 draw at Ankaraspor.

Kayserispor were already trailing to Bilal Kisa's strike when Toledo saw red after 59 minutes.

Kayserispor then fell further behind to Duarte Neca's effort but Bilal Aziz halved the deficit before Franco Cangele snatched a point in stoppage time.

Hapless defender Emre Toraman twice put through his own net to gift Bursaspor a 2-1 victory over Eskisehirspor, while Denizlispor and Hacettepe played out a goalless draw.
SUNDAY MATCHES:
Denizlispor 0-0 Hacettepe
Eskisehirspor 1-1 Bursaspor
Ankaraspor 2-2 Kayserispor
Trabzonspor 2-2 Galatasaray

Saturday, March 14, 2009

SIVASSPOR STILL ON TOP!...

Turkcell Super league Leader Sivasspor won a important match in away game against Ankaragucu.

They beat Ankaragucu with two goals ..Goals : 67′ Mehmet Yıldız, 83′ Kamanan

Because of suspension by the Federation, Sivasspor coach Bulent Uygun, was not on the sideline for this game . He will serve 4 game suspension in the league because of absurd behavior that he showed last weekend.

But, Sivasspor found the way, to score goals again by their go to guys, Mehmet Yildiz and Frenchman Kamanan .

BESIKTAS ON THE MOVE........

Besiktas won in Istanbul on Saturday night, which boosts its claim for the championship.

Black eagles won the game 3-0 against Genclerbirligi.

Goals: Fabian Ernst (64′) Ekrem Dağ (88′) Filip Holosko (90′)

Besiktas will plays Sivasspor next weekend in a show down match in Sivas...

The winner will grab the top spot, in my opinion...

A draw will be good for Trabzonspor, if they beat Galatasaray on Sunday.

At the end of the week 24, Sivasspor on top with 49 Besiktas on second with 48 and Trabzon on third with 45 and they have a game on hand which they will play against Galatasaray on Sunday.


This match is very important for both teams...


If Galatasaray loses this match , they will fell behind the race just like Fenerbahce!...


Also on Saturday, Giray Bulak's Konyaspor could not win games in their home field....

They loss to Gazinatep at home 2-3 , they are just lucky that a lot of the team that near them in the standings has loss points on Saturday...

But, the danger is not over for Bulak and for Konyasspor.........


Elsewhere , Antalyaspor beat Buyuksehir at home with one goal and sink Buyuksehir in to the danger zone!...

On Friday, in the opening of the match, Fenerbahce could not win their back to back third game in front of their own fans .

Roberto Carlos scored a early goal fro Fenerbahce in the fourth minute of the match as he took a powerful shot from out side of the box .

Fenerbahce hold on the lead most of the match but, again they forgot , the match is ninety minutes!..
In the 87nth minute a sub who came in for Kocaelispor Julio Cesar Moreira scored the the goal that
shattered Fenerbahce's dream to capture the top on Friday for at least for one day!....

If Fenerbahce keeps blowing chances like this at their home field, they might as well. forget about the Championship this season , in my opinion.

On the other hand, Giant killer who is looking to stay alive in the league, Kocaelispor , has a good chance to put up a fight, now

They have reached to 20 point mark , If they win their all remain games, they have a good chance to survive.

Lastly, On Sunday Result will bring more teams close to dangers zone and most important match of the night will be between Trabzonspor and Galatasaray ....

We will be watching........


AHMET TURGUT

Thursday, March 12, 2009

Galatasaray Goes back to Istanbul With Advantage

Galatasaray moved into the driving seat of their UEFA Cup last 16 tie with Hamburg thanks to a draw at the HSV Arena this evening, despite playing most of the second half with 10 men.
Ayhan Akman gave Galatasaray the lead in the 32nd minute before Marcell Jansen equalised early in the second half.

Emre Asik was sent for an early bath in the 53rd minute, but Galatasaray held on for a draw which gives them a slight advantage ahead of the second leg in Istanbul next week.

Piotr Trochowski was the early danger man for Hamburg as he threatened the Galatasaray goal with two shots from distance.

His first, in the third minute, cleared the crossbar by a matter of inches with his second in the 28th minute pushed wide by Gala goalkeeper Morgan de Sanctis.

The visitors' biggest threat came from former Schalke player Lincoln and his 18th-minute free-kick landed straight into the arms of Hamburg goalkeeper Frank Rost.

Rost was beaten in the 32nd minute though when an unstoppable shot from Akman slipped in off the inside of his left hand post after the ball squirmed free from a challenge by Jerome Boateng on Lincoln just outside the penalty area.

Hamburg were level five minutes into the second half. Guerrero's left-wing cross was headed back across the face of goal by Mladen Petric to Jansen, who volleyed the ball past De Sanctis from close range.

Shabani Nonda had the chance score for Galatasaray minutes later when he was put through with Rost venturing a long way off his line.

However, he lifted his shot over the Hamburg goalkeeper and also over the crossbar.

In the 53rd minute, Gala were reduced to 10 men when Emre was sent off for a foul as the last man against Petric, who had been sent through on goal by Guerrero. Petric's consequent free-kick was easily saved by De Sanctis.

Hamburg failed to take advantage of the extra man though, with Collin Benjamin coming close with a volley which Mehmet Guven headed onto his own crossbar while Ivica Olic hit the outside of the post in the last minute.

Hamburg then survived a late scare when Umit Karan found the back of the net with his shot but the chance was disallowed for a foul.


Source:Wires

OZCAN ARKOC: "FIRST FRIENDSHIP "


The new generation will probably wont remember his name but, He was giant name in Turkey and in Germany.

His name is Ozcan Arkoc, who still lives in Norderstedt, Germany and just celebrated his 70th birthday in October.

He played With Fenerbahce in late 50's and 60's in the Turkish League than he played for Hamburg team and coached Hamburg team between 1977-1978.

He was the Keeper when Turkish Great Metin Oktay scored that famous goal when he ripped the nets!...

But, that season Fenerbahce went on and won the Turkish League with Ozcan Arkoc.


I am so upset, that Turkish media has not talked about this legend from Germany...


According to interview he gave to HH Sports from Germany, He wants the Friendship first..

Ozcan Arkoc said "The results are secondary for him , he went on to say, He (lives in Norderstedt) want fun and good football in both matches.

JOSE MOURINHO IN HOT WATER...

Police investigate Mourinho 'punch' reports

Greater Manchester Police are investigating an allegation of common assault against Jose Mourinho following Wednesday's Champions League tie between Manchester United and Inter Milan at Old Trafford.


It has been alleged Mourinho punched a supporter close to the Inter team bus as he left the stadium following his side's 2-0 defeat.

GMP have contacted United to request CCTV footage of the area and have confirmed a complaint has been made.

"Shortly before midnight last night a man reported that he had been punched in the face outside Old Trafford," a police statement read. "We are investigating an allegation of common assault."

United would only confirm they are aware of the allegation and are making no further comment.

The allegation came at the end of a bad night for Mourinho, who watched his team crash out of the Champions League following their defeat, with Nemanja Vidic and Cristiano Ronaldo grabbing United's goals at the start of each half.

Although the former Chelsea manager was in jovial mood, shaking hands with Red Devils supporters as he made his way to the visitors' dug-out before kick-off and after half-time and enjoyed a friendly post-match chat with Sir Alex Ferguson, he came under sustained attack from the Italian media for his failure to get Inter through.

''If anyone wishes to criticise my team, they will have to fight me,'' he said at one point, those comments coming via an official interpreter from Italian.

Although he has taken Inter to the top of Serie A, his relationship with the local press is far from smooth, a fact that has only fuelled a belief that he could one day replace Ferguson at Old Trafford.

The plane taking the Inter party back to Milan left Manchester at 12.25am, once Mourinho had concluded his post-match obligations and enjoyed his ritual of a meeting with Ferguson.


Source: Wires

TURKISH NATIONAL TEAM DROPS IN THE FIFA MARCH RANKINGS

Turkish National team, could not hold on to tenth place in the FIFA March Rankings and went down to 11th place.

Portugal National team took the 10th spot from Turkey.

Spain still the number one team in the Fifa rankings ...

US national team also moved up in the rankings in march too..

Here are the FIFA rankings for the month of March 2009...

Ranking
1 Spain
2 Germany
3 Netherlands
4 Italy
5 Brazil
6 Argentina
7 Croatia
8 Russia
9 England
10 Portugal
11 Turkey
12 France
13 Czech Republic
14 Ukraine
15 Paraguay
16 Cameroon
17 USA
18 Israel
19 Greece
20 Romania
21 Uruguay
22 Switzerland
23 Mexico
24 Nigeria
25 Sweden
26 Republic of Ireland
27 Bulgaria
28 Scotland
29 Poland
30 Chile
31 Egypt
32 Australia
32 Costa Rica
34 Ghana
35 Japan
36 Serbia
37 Côte d'Ivoire
38 Denmark
39 Ecuador
40 Honduras
41 Morocco
42 Iran
43 Northern Ireland
44 Korea Republic
45 Norway
46 Mali
47 Colombia
48 Hungary
49 Belgium
50 Guinea
51 Panama
52 Lithuania
53 Slovakia
54 Tunisia
55 Saudi Arabia
56 Bolivia
57 Finland
58 Bosnia-Herzegovina
59 Slovenia
60 Senegal
61 FYR Macedonia
62 Congo
63 Gabon
64 Algeria
65 Venezuela
66 Burkina Faso
67 Bahrain
67 Wales
69 Uganda
70 Jamaica
71 Latvia
72 South Africa
73 Gambia
74 Uzbekistan
75 Trinidad and Tobago
76 Iceland
77 Peru
78 Angola
79 New Zealand
80 Albania
81 Oman
82 Libya
83 Iraq
84 Cyprus
85 Rwanda
86 Benin
87 Qatar
88 Sudan
88 Austria
88 Belarus
91 Togo
92 Zambia
93 Mozambique
94 Canada
95 Congo DR
96 Syria
96 Kenya
98 Moldova
99 Cuba
100 China PR
101 Ethiopia
102 Zimbabwe
103 Tanzania
104 Fiji
105 Cape Verde Islands
106 El Salvador
107 Korea DPR
108 Malawi
109 Equatorial Guinea
110 Sierra Leone
110 Georgia
112 Montenegro
113 Guatemala
114 Kuwait
115 Namibia
116 United Arab Emirates
117 Haiti
118 Thailand
118 Bermuda
120 Armenia
121 Botswana
122 Grenada
122 Luxembourg
124 Antigua and Barbuda
125 Chad
126 Estonia
127 Jordan
128 Guyana
129 Barbados
130 Kazakhstan
131 Suriname
132 Singapore
133 New Caledonia
134 Burundi
134 Azerbaijan
136 Vietnam
137 Indonesia
138 Madagascar
139 Swaziland
140 Nicaragua
141 Hong Kong
142 Liberia
143 Yemen
143 Vanuatu
145 Puerto Rico
146 Malta
147 Niger
148 Tajikistan
149 India
150 Mauritania
151 Lebanon
152 Liechtenstein
153 Netherlands Antilles
154 St. Kitts and Nevis
155 Kyrgyzstan
156 Turkmenistan
157 St. Vincent and the Grenadines
158 Maldives
159 Myanmar
160 Eritrea
161 Malaysia
162 Lesotho
163 Solomon Islands
164 Sri Lanka
164 Philippines
166 Pakistan
167 Chinese Taipei
168 Cayman Islands
169 Bahamas
170 Laos
171 Seychelles
172 Nepal
173 Mauritius
174 Bangladesh
174 Palestine
176 St. Lucia
176 Samoa
178 Belize
179 Somalia
180 Cambodia
181 Turks and Caicos Islands
182 British Virgin Islands
182 Brunei Darussalam
184 Afghanistan
185 Faroe Islands
186 Djibouti
187 Dominican Republic
188 Guinea-Bissau
189 Bhutan
190 Tahiti
190 Tonga
192 Aruba
193 Mongolia
194 US Virgin Islands
195 Andorra
196 Dominica
197 Macau
198 Timor-Leste
199 Comoros
200 Central African Republic
201 San Marino
201 Anguilla
201 Guam
201 Montserrat
201 Cook Islands
201 American Samoa
201 Papua New Guinea

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Galatasaray Ready For Hamburg In Germany

Despite losing Portugese International defender Fernando Meira to Zenith team in this week and injuries, Galatasaray still thinks that they could beat Hamburg in Germany in the UEFA Cup last-16 first-leg match on Thursday.


Since the rookie coach Bulent Korkmaz took over the coaching dutties with a little luck,they have won their last three matches in the Turkish Turkcell Super League and beat Bordeaux team in the second leg match.



With the help of Galatasaray and Turkish football fans, who lives in Hamburg and around Germany Galatasaray will feel like they are at home...


The fans in the stadium will be a plus for Galatasaray.


On the other hand,

Hamburg coach Martin Jol admits his side must create a comfortable cushion for themselves .


"You definitely need to be one or two goals ahead if you want to survive over there," he said.

"We have got to be tight at the back and make the difference with a goal up front.

"We will have to push ourselves to the limit."


Hamburg team has a German Born Turkish player on their roster too.


His name is Tunay Torun, and he is only 19 years old and he says he would like to score against Galatasaray if he plays.


Galatasaray , will have so strengthen the defense in Germany ,in my opinion.


After selling Meira to Zenith for Cash, Galatasaray will have a trouble in the backfield ..


Servet Cetin being hurt and There is only one stopper on the team ...

That is Emre Asik, who is 36 years old...

If he get's hurt the player who replace him is only 18 years old Semih Kaya, who has not seeing action yet....


Look For Bulent Korkmaz to use Hakan Balta in the defense against Hamburg.

Striker Milan Baros is suspended for this match and Bulent Korkmaz will start with Shabani Nonda .


Harry Kewell is ready and will play in midfield alongside with Lincoln.


Galatasaray's game plan should include the second leg match.


They should be very conservative ..


Even a draw will be good for the second leg match in Hamburg.


Galatasaray's lucky charm, former captain of the team Bulent Korkmaz now coach of the team is all of sudden on top of the world with Galatasaray ..


Not bad, for a guy who was home watching the matches in his living room about twenty five days a go!...

The man, was not even welcome to the Galatasaray club facilities now leads the Galatasaray team against Hamburg team in the UEFA Cup..

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Meira Leaves Galatasaray

According to report from Turkey Galatasaray has agreed to transfer Portuguese player Fernando Meira to Zenit in exchange for six million Euros.

The Russian Zenit Clubis in Istanbul talking with the Galatasaray Administration to secure Fernando Meira on their squad. In the end, the two clubs reached an agreement and Meira will now go to Zenit in exchange for six million Euros. The news comes as a surprise to Galatasaray fans just prior to the UEFA game against Hamburg.

Monday, March 9, 2009

Roberto Carlos Conducts Fenerbahce To Win


HEAT AND PRESSURE IS ON IN THE TURKISH TURKCELL SUPER LEAGUE..







Just think , only two weeks a go, Sivasspor was ahead of Fenerbahce seven points in the Turkish Turkcell Super League.







Since 21th week, Sivasspor only manage to get one point....







While Sivaspor and Trabzonspor went in slump mode the Istanbul's three big guns Fenerbahce, Galatasaray and Besiktas put on their dancing shoes...







Leagues top team Sivasspor ,had a bad week again this weekend..







At home they draw a though team from Ankara, Ankaraspor.1-1







They not only loss points their rookie coach Bulent Uygun lost his coolness on the sideline and started kicking the bench booth shield...







like that was not enough, after the match he went after the match officials...







It was a bazaar .......







Roberto Carlos lead Fenerbahce in a brand new Kadir Has stadium In Kayseri , against Kayserispor ...







On both both of the goals there was Roberto Carlos signature was on...







He assisted on both goals...



Semih Senturk and Alex De Souza scored for Fenerbahce.







At the end of the 23rd week in the Turkish Super League, the race on top and the bottom will get very hot...







The Gap on top is very close now...







Sivaspor could not show, that they were clutch team ,in my opinion...



Besiktas , Galatasaray and Fenerbahce after closing on Sivaspor and Trabzonspor will put up a big fight now...







Eleven weeks to go, We might see this going down to wire, in my opinion....



If the race stays tight like this, until last weekend....



We might witness very crucial last weekend in the Turkish Turkcell Super League..







Here is why....



In the last weekend, Galatasaray will host Sivasspor , Fenerbahce will travel to Trabzon and Besiktas wll travel to Denizlispor.







So, In ten weeks we will see tight race on top and also on the bottom of the league too.



Here are the scores from 23th week in the Turkcell Super League...


Galatasaray 2 - 1 Bursaspor

I.Belediyespor 0 - 2 Denizlispor
Gaziantepspor 1 - 1 Antalyaspor
Trabzonspor 0 - 1 Konyaspor
Hacettepe 2 - 3 Besiktas

Kocaelispor 1 - 0 Eskişehirspor
Gençlerbirligi 2 - 0 Ankaragücü
Sivasspor 1 - 1 Ankaraspor
Kayserispor 0 - 2 Fenerbahce




AHMET TURGUT

Saturday, March 7, 2009

Turkish Super League Saturday Wrap:TRABZONSPOR DOWN BESIKTAS UP

TRABZONSPOR DOWN BESIKTAS UP

As I mentioned in my preview article for Saturday matches, all the matches on Saturday was going to be tight matches.


SUPRISE....SUPRISE....

Well, What I predict in Trabzon , did happened....

Trabzonspor loss at home again against the team who is Fighting for their life in the league

As I said it before, actually the Trabzonians who plays for Konyaspor and coaches for Konyaspor beat Ersun Yanal's Trabzonspor team.

The young Konyaspor keeper Oguzhan had a huge match...

He made a lot of saves in this match.

Konyaspor, held Trabzonspor with a little luck until 84 minute of the match than scored the matches only goal by Roman Kratochvil in the 84th minute and won a very important three points in the 23th week.

With this win Konyaspor reached to 27 points in the league...

On the other hand Trabzonspor wen down...

Before this match, they were sharing the top spot with Sivasspor ...

This was a good Birthday gift for Konyaspor coach who will celebrate his 51th birtday on March 9th , Monday.

BESIKTAS MOVING UP....

Although Besiktas played away match, Besiktas find to beat the last place team Hacettepe in Ankara .

It was not easy though...

Coach Mustafa Denizli was sweating big time in the last minutes of the match in a cold night in Ankara..

After scoring two goals in the first twenty minutes of the match , Besiktas went in to relaxing mode....

But, at the end, they beat Hacettepe with 2-3 score.

Besiktas gooals came by M.E. Delgado,Mert Nobre and Bobo while Hacettepe answered with Patiyo Tampwe two goals.

This was back to back third win for Besiktas ..

And this was first, this season...

So, while Trabzonspor went down in the standing , Besiktas moved up in the standings.

With 45 points , Besiktas will go on top of the Trabzonspor and will wait for Sivasspor match On Sunday.

Sivasspor, Besiktas and Trabzonspor each has 45 points now and Sivasspor will play their match on Sunday.

Even if Sivaspor loses the match on Sunday against Ankaraspor at home , they will still be on top a draw and win will make Sivasspor the only top team at the end of the 23th week in the Turkish Super League.



Also on Saturday, Denizlispor surprised Istanbul B.B, and beat them in their own home with two goals

Under new coach Mesut Bakkal Denizlispor won four in a row in the league...

This loss put Istanbul B.B in serious trouble in the league..

Denizlispor's goals scored by Burak Akyildiz and Emil Rosenov Angelov .

With this win Denizlispor surpass Istanbul B.B, in the standing....

Denizlispor moved up to 11 Th place with 27 points while Istanbul B.B drop down to 14 Th place with 25 points.

Antalyaspor the team who is trying to get out from the fire zone was winning in away match until the last minute but, in the last minute home team Gaziantepspor score the equalizer and killed Antalyaspor's three point hopes...
Istanbul BB 0-2 Denizlispor

Turkish Super League Saturday Preview

CLUTCH TIME.............

As we get closer to the end of the season in the Turkish Turkcell Super League, every match and every weekend becomes very important to teams who are playing for the top spot and the teams trying to get out of the danger zone too.

So, This weekends, Saturday and Sunday matches are perfect examples ...

After Galatasaray won on Friday ,the other top teams like Sivasspor,Trabzonspor and Besiktas are feeling the pressure from Friday allready.............

Just think, on Saturday if Besiktas and Trabzonspor lose point or points ,the traffic on top will be really crucial...

In the early day time matches we have teams who are fighting for their life in the league who will take the stage first.

In Istanbul, Istanbul Buyuksehir Belediye will play against a team is desperate for points....

Istanbul B.B, also in need of points in the league...

In Gaziantepspor will host another team that is looking to get out from the fire zone Antalyaspor.

These two matches start in mid day local Turkish time...

The result out of these matches will effect the Saturday night another two matches which will be broadcast on LIG TV live......

THE OLD TRABZONSPOR(KONYASPOR) V THE NEW TRABZONSPOR..........

First, Turkcell Super Leagues one of the top teams Trabzonspor will face a desperate Konyaspor.Actually, The old TRabzonspor(KOnyaspor) will be against the Trabzonspor!.......

I say old Trabzonspor, because Konyaspor have at least four or five former Trabzonspor players and a former Trabzonspor coach Giray Bulak.......

Giray Bulak also was born in Trabzon on March 9th 1958.......

A win for Konyaspor will be the greatest gift for coach Giray Bulak,,,,,,,,,

Can they do it?...

Why not!....Denizlispor did it just a couple weeks ago.....

On the other hand, TRabzonspor and Ersun Yanal knows very well...

They have to win this clutch match...........

Lastly, the last match of the Saturday will be in Ankara...

Leagues last place team Hacettepe who fired their coach again, will face Besiktas.

Besiktas, has to win this match to recapture the third place from Galatasaray...

In the last three macthes Besiktas playing as a team...

And, coach Mustafa Denizli,finaly putting the pathes together ....

It will be better ,if he gives Holosko a chance again in the staring eleven...

But, Besiktas is on right track,so far,they should not have problem on Saturday in my opinion....

See you on Sunday Preview ,later on here again....

Ahmet Turgut

Friday, March 6, 2009

GALATASARAY MOVED UP TO THIRD PLACE

Galatasaray won their back to back second match in the Turkish Turkcell Super League after a coaching change at the helm.


Not to forget, they also beat Bordo team from France in the UEFA cup match too..

So, all of sudden things are looking goood in the Galatasaray side...

But, the play on the pitch today was not a good enaough, in my opinion....

Under, New rookie coach Bulent Korkmaz they are on good track for now before UEFA Cup match against German team Hamburg...


On Friday, Galatasaray moved up to third place in the Turkish Turkcell Super League courtesy of a 2-1 win over Bursaspor.

Galatasaray went ahead in the 10th minute of the match with Milan Baros goal than in the 31th minute Bursaspor's keeper Ivankov made a huge mistake and kick the ball to Aydin Yilmaz and the ball hit Baros and went in made a huge mistake and kick the ball to Milan Baros and the ball hit Aydin and went in and made it 2-0. .

Ibrahim Ozturk pulled one back for Bursaspor after the break but it was not enough to prevent Galatasaray moving to within two points of leaders Sivasspor and Trabzonspor, albeit having played one more game.

Thursday, March 5, 2009

NY TIMES:"In Turkey, Women Playing Soccer Vie for Acceptance "

You could not find any kind of news like this in any Turkish news papers in Turkey.

Although number one sport in Turkey is Football, you can not find any extend news about Turkish Women soccer(football)league in the Turkish News papers..

But, New York Times did something what most of the Turkish National news papers did not do..............

Gave a extended coverage to Turkish National women's soccer league.....

Journalist YIGAL SCHLEIFER, went to Turkey and wrote about Turkish women soccer league...

Kudos to YIGAL SCHLEIFER and to New York Times..............

Here is the Article...................



Tyler Hicks/The New York Times
Players for Kartalspor and Gazi Universitesispor.


By YIGAL SCHLEIFER
Published: March 3, 2009
ISTANBUL — On a recent cold, gray Sunday, two Turkish premier league soccer teams enthusiastically ran onto the field of a small stadium on the outskirts of Istanbul.

Turks are soccer mad, with games regularly attended by tens of thousands of boisterous fans. But at this game, between host Kartalspor and Ankara’s Gazi Universitesispor, the 22 players on the field outnumbered the people shivering in the stands.

The weather was probably not to blame for the poor attendance; it was more likely because of who was playing. The two teams are part of Turkey’s new women’s soccer league, and although Turks may be soccer fanatics, there is a deep ambivalence in this socially conservative, predominantly Muslim society about women playing the game.

Halfway through its 18-game inaugural season, the league has met a combination of indifference, curiosity and occasional hostility.

“Football is seen as a man’s game in Turkey,” said Nurper Ozbar, 30, the coach of Marmara Universitesispor, the top team in the second division of the league, which also has two youth divisions.

“We’ve had men come to watch our practices and yell at our players: ‘What are you doing here? You should be at home, cooking!’ ” said Ozbar, one of the few women accredited as a soccer coach in Turkey, and the only one in Istanbul. “It’s going to take time to change this.”

Turkey has thriving professional women’s basketball and volleyball leagues. Soccer, for the most part, remains a men’s-only zone. In a country of 70 million, only 798 women and girls are registered as players with the Turkish Football Federation, soccer’s governing body. In comparison, about 230,000 male players are registered with the federation.

For the players in the women’s league, just finding their way to a team can be a monumental challenge. Deniz Bicer, a midfielder with Gazi Universitesispor, the only women’s team in the Turkish capital, Ankara, has to travel almost two hours each way to get to practice.

“In my neighborhood, because it was seen as a man’s game, there was pressure on me and my family that I not play football,” the 18-year-old Bicer said after Gazi’s 3-1 victory over Kartalspor.

“People kept telling me this is a man’s game, you should be interested in other sports, but football is a passion for me,” she said.

The new league is Turkey’s second attempt at establishing women’s soccer. An amateur league of about two dozen teams existed in Turkey for a decade until it was shut down in 2002 amid allegations of mismanagement and rumors of affairs between female players — particularly scandalous in this country.

This time around, the Turkish federation appears intent on promoting the idea of women’s and girls’ soccer to a skeptical nation.

“A lot of our work is public relations, to convince families that girls can play football,” said Erden Or, 33, the federation’s development officer for women’s soccer.

“Some believe that playing football can harm a girl’s build and make her manly,” Or said.

“They believe that it’s a man’s game, so we have to show them proof that they can play football without a problem,” added Or, whose wife chides him for kicking the ball around with their 3-year-old daughter.

Or has been crisscrossing Turkey, staging panel discussions in different cities with coaches and female players and answering questions from worried parents and resistant physical education teachers. When he finds out about a girl whose parents refuse to let her play soccer, Or said, he phones them to help ease their minds.

“If she wants to play, I will call them directly, like a father inquiring about a bride,” he said.

Selling women’s soccer also requires dolling it up. One of the new logos for the league features a slender woman’s hand with long, red-painted fingernails cupping a soccer ball. The background on Or’s computer screen is a photograph of a soccer cleat with a stiletto heel.

Despite Or’s effort and some financial assistance from the Turkish federation, getting by is a struggle for most of the teams in the new league. The news media have mostly ignored it, and sponsors have been hard to find. Kartalspor had to forfeit an away game a few weeks ago because the team could not afford to make the six-hour trip to Izmir.

“We’re getting a lot of moral support, but not a lot of financial support,” said Ozbar, the Marmara Universitesispor coach. “We don’t have a sponsor, so I’m paying for our expenses out of my pocket.”

She added: “Our players don’t look at this as a profession because they can’t earn money from it yet. They can’t picture a life for themselves in football.”

There are some hopeful signs for the league. Although the first-division teams tend to come from more liberal cities, girls’ teams are sprouting in unlikely places, including in Hakkari, a town in the predominantly Kurdish and conservative southeast region.

In Sakarya, just outside Istanbul, the local women’s team’s winning streak has led to real crowds at its games.

“In Turkey, the biggest power is success,” said Sinan Panta, 41, the president of the Sakarya Yenikent Gunesspor Kulubu team, currently atop the women’s first division with 10 wins, 1 tie and 1 loss. “At our first game, there were 100 people. As we started winning more games, we’re now seeing 2,500 or 3,000 fans at our games.”

For next season, Panta said he had rounded up enough cash to bring in a Nigerian transfer, midfielder Onome Ebi, who played on her country’s 2008 Olympic team.

“The people here initially weren’t friendly to the idea that women could play football, but we’ve broken that idea down,” said Panta, a former professional player. “We’ve achieved our goal: we’ve made Sakarya accept women’s football. We’ve succeeded in a conservative place.”

At the Kartalspor-Gazi Universitesispor game, a motley mix of curious men and boys gathered in the stadium, a bleak, half-finished cement structure overlooking a busy highway. Standing nearby was Selmin Odabas, the mother of a player named Selin, a speedy 20-year-old striker for the home team.

“In the beginning, we didn’t want our daughter to play,” Odabas said. “We were worried that it would affect her posture, her character, even her sexual orientation. We put her in volleyball, in track, but nothing could stop her.”

As Selin’s skills improved — she was named to the national women’s team — their attitude changed, Odabas said.

She pointed out a wiry man nearby shouting encouragement at Kartalspor’s players and cursing their opponents.

“Now her father is a fanatic fan,” she said.


Bulent Cinar, a translator, contributed reporting.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/04/sports/soccer/04soccer.html?_r=2&pagewanted=all

IS TUNCAY SANLI "GREATEST TURK IN HISTORY?........."

Thanks to my blogger friend Oz Kanka who writes about Ankara football teams from Ankara posted this first time.

A well known Football columnist from England Peter Huges, called Tuncay Sanli "Greatest Turk in History" in his recent article!...

What is so absurd, He mentioned his name along with Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.

Like my friend said in his blog sometimes the columnist go a bit over board, when they mix apples with oranges!....

Here is the article writing by Peter Huges..............


HE'S THE GREATEST TURK IN HISTORY...

Peter Hughes; 3 March 2009

…or so the song goes.

And with the greatest respect to Orhan Pamuk, Sertab Erener, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk and even Sulyman the Magnificent, you have to think that when he’s on form, Tuncay Sanli IS the greatest Turk in history.

It’s great to have him back.

It was a mystery where he disappeared to. Whether it was his efforts in last summer’s European Championships taking their toll, having his head turned by talk of a move to Chelsea or even just a dislike of the North East winter, it has been clear that Tuncay has not been on top form of late.

Whatever the reason was, it has had a direct influence on the club’s form.

At the beginning of the season, he was outstanding. His hundred miles an hour, non-stop style led us to some great results and he seemed to be behind our every move.

He then picked up an injury playing for Turkey and missed all of our games in September. We lost them all.

He then came back into the team and we started to climb the table once more. After two good months, in which he was probably our best player, we were in the top half of the table and looking towards a UEFA Cup (sorry – Europa League) place.

After a hat trick for his country, he got a brace in our win at Villa Park and he, and the Boro, were in imperious form. We had the longest unbeaten run in the Premiership and things were looking good.

But then something went wrong.

Maybe he just ran out of steam. Maybe he was thinking of the warm beaches of Marmaris, when all he could have was the not so warm beaches at Marske.

Whatever went wrong, it affected the whole team.

I said earlier in the season that he is the link man, the man who makes the runs, the man who makes the space and just as importantly, the man who motivates the crowd. He is ‘the heart’ of the team.

When the heart stopped beating, the team seemed to die.

For three months, it looked like touch and go for the Boro. Many thought they wouldn’t pull round.

But then came the Wednesday match against the Hammers. He was linked up front with Aliadiere and he was a changed man. Back came the old Tunch. His bouncy run, his boundless energy… he was bound to score.

A goal in the twentieth minute and all was good in the world again.

Unlike some teams, we do take our cup runs seriously on Teesside. However, the priority is survival. The game against Liverpool was always going to be tough and so it proved.

They had 72% of the possession, nine corners to our two and twenty-three shots to our five.

We battled away though and when man of the match Stewey put in a dangerous corner, we got the stroke of luck we haven’t had for a while.

But just when you thought their pressure would tell, once again the former Fenerbahçe frontman fired home.

It could well be that it is the return of the warm weather (if you can ever call it warm on Teesside in February), that has brought out the best in Tunch. Or it could be good management to drop him from the away games at Man City and West Ham.

Gareth said that he felt he was feeling a bit jaded and wanted to give him chance to recharge his batteries. Well it certainly seems to have worked.

And God knows we needed him back.

Before the Liverpool game, we had had only one League win at the Riverside in over six months!

Before Alonso’s own goal, we had only scored once in fifteen hours of League football!

And yet now, instead of thinking about how much season tickets will cost in the Championship, we are looking forward to games for the first time in ages.

In our next five League matches we play the teams that are currently in fourteenth, sixteenth, nineteenth, tenth and thirteenth in the table.

One win could move us up into thirteenth place. What a great time to start hitting form again.

We are now unbeaten in four games and have only lost three out of our eleven games this year.

It’s amazing how a few good results totally change your outlook on life. A couple of good wins and we will shoot up the table. Hell, if we’d managed to get a win at West Ham earlier this season, we would only be six points off a place in Europe!

And if we ever do get back into Europe, I know we will give it our best shot.

What’s the point of spending all season trying to qualify for Europe and then playing a reserve team in the actual competition?

I cannot understand why Aston Villa did not put a decent team out against CSKA Moscow. It was their only chance of silverware this season and they didn’t turn up.

It’s like a family saving up all year for a holiday in Spain and then not going so they can work some overtime to try and go to Florida next year.

Although I have some sympathy with ’Arry having to play Shaktar three days before a Cup Final, he still sent out a weakened team to Ukraine in the first leg and so lost the tie.

Their players will be drained physically and emotionally after going out of both competitions in four days and it gives us a great chance to pick up three points down the Lane on Wednesday night.

It may be years before Spurs play in Europe again. It may also be years before the Boro play in Europe again but at least we went down fighting in the blaze of glory that is a European final.

If only we had shown the same fighting spirit that we showed on those wonderful European nights at the Riverside against bloody Cardiff. If we had done, we could have been making our way to Tuncay’s old stomping grounds in Istanbul for the Final in May.

http://www.comeonboro.com/columns/212923.php

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

FORTIS TURKISH CUP SEMI-FINALS WRAP

Besiktas and Fenerbahce are one step close to the final.

Besiktas who had a clear victor in Ankara against Ankaraspor on Tuesday, have aadvantage for the second leg of the semi-finals in the Fortis Turkish Cup with an away victory of 1-3,coming back from one goal deficit to win it with three unanswered goals.

Bilal Kisa put Ankaraspor ahead in the 25th minute, but Besiktas scored with Matías Delgado (41), Filip Hološko (77) and Yusuf Simsek (89).

On the other hand, on Wednesday in Istanbul, Fenerbahce hosted the leader of the Turkish Turkcell Super League, Sivasspor.

Having beaten the leaders 4-2 in İstanbul just on Sunday in a league game, Fenerbahce was once again the winners, again with the same margin : 3-1.

After a goalless 65-minute start, Fenerbahce's goals came from Deniz (66), Edu (75) and Deivid (84), while Sivasspor's only goal scored by Bilica at 82.



With theese scores, Fenerbahce and Besiktas are seemengly the strongest candidates for the finals. The two İstanbul sides most likely meet in the Fortis Cup Finals.

Fenerbahce hasn't win the Turkish Cup since 1983.

The second leg games of the Turkish Cup will be played on April 22.

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

IT LOOKS LIKE BESIKTAS WILL BE IN THE FINALS!

BESIKTAS CAME FROM BEHIND TO WIN

This was the best Besiktas team I saw this year! .
They won the away match in the first leg of the Fortis Turkish Cup match, against Ankaraspor,with coming back from one goal deficit to win it with three unanswered goals.

Bilal Kisa put Ankaraspor ahead in the 25th minute, but Besiktas scored with Matías Delgado (41), Filip Hološko (77) and Yusuf Simsek (89).
Fenerbahce and Sivasspor will play on Wednesday
ANKARASPOR 1- 3 BESIKTAS

LA Times: "Beckham Deal Done"


Getty Images

The Los Angeles Times,reporting that David Beckham has paid Major League Soccer to allow him to remain longer with AC Milan, though he will also rejoin the Los Angeles Galaxy in July.

Source says he will remain with AC Milan through the Serie A season, then come back to L.A. That could be the end of his MLS career.

According to the terms of the proposed agreement, Beckham would extend his current loan to AC Milan beyond its March 9 expiration and play there until the May 31 Italian season finale.

He would then have to wait until the MLS international transfer window opens on July 15 to rejoin the Galaxy, meaning he would miss the first 17 games of the 30-game 2009 MLS season. His first match for the Galaxy would be on July 18 at New York.

The complicated scenario does not end there.


Beckham would be under contract to the Galaxy until his buy-out clause takes effect at the end of this calendar year. From a practical standpoint, however, he would be free to leave once the Galaxy's regular season and possible playoff run ends, which would be at the end of November if the club reaches the MLS championship final.

At that point, Beckham would be free to rejoin AC Milan, although he probably would have to wait until January and the opening of the next international transfer period.

A source close to the negotiations said all parties -- the Galaxy, AC Milan, Galaxy owner AEG, MLS and Beckham himself -- were satisfied with the arrangement.

Financially, the agreement is said to be worth multimillion dollars to the Galaxy and to MLS, although no exact figures were known. The Galaxy had been seeking more than $10-million from Milan for an outright purchase of Beckham, but the new arrangement is believed to be worth far more than that.

Milan had said it would pay no more than $3 million for Beckham, knowing it could get him for free in November. It is now willing to pay far more than that, but again the exact figure was unknown.

For exercising the escape clause in his five-year, $32.5-million contract with MLS, Beckham, too, will have to pay hefty compensation.

The Galaxy would also benefit by not having Beckham's $6.5-million salary count against the MLS salary cap until he returns, leaving the club free to make other moves in the meantime. If Beckham is injured during the next four months while with AC Milan, the Galaxy, AEG and the league would be covered under an insurance policy.

From AC Milan's position, having Beckham available for its final 12 games of the season would help it immensely as it strives to finish in the top three in the league and thereby qualify for next season's European Champions League.

From Beckham's standpoint, staying with Milan will significantly help his chances of remaining on the England national team as it tries to qualify for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

England Coach Fabio Capello has said Beckham needs to be playing regularly and at a high level to be considered. England has six World Cup qualifying games and three friendly matches on its schedule in the rest of 2009.

The Galaxy would have to release him for three of those England qualifiers and for two of the friendly matches if Beckham is called up by the national team. They would not impact his Galaxy games, although he would have to make at least three transatlantic trips and play Galaxy games shortly after each one.

Immediately after the May 31 end of the Italian season, Beckham could be called up for England's World Cup qualifiers on the road against Kazakhstan on June 6 and at home against Andorra on June 10.

He could then train with the Galaxy before July 15, but could not be activated until that date.

Beckham's next match is on Wednesday night in Doha, Qatar, where AC Milan is playing a lucrative friendly against the Qatari club Al Sadd. His next league match in Serie A is on Sunday in Milan against Atalanta.

The close of business today is the deadline for MLS teams to reduce their rosters to the new league limit of 24 players. Beckham will still be included in the Galaxy's 24, since he will be returning, but MLS fans will not see him until July.

Source:LA Times

Monday, March 2, 2009

Former Galatasaray Player might play for Manchester United

Manchester United has emerged as the latest club to be linked with a move for former Galatasaray and current Bayern Munich winger Franck Ribery, thanks primarily to statements by the 25-year-old French international's agent.


Alain Migliaccio has claimed in an interview with German newspaper Bild that United boss Sir Alex Ferguson would move for Ribery should the Old Trafford club choose to cash-in and allow Cristiano Ronaldo to mover to Real Madrid this summer.

Ribery has been in solid form for the Germany champions this year scoring six goals and setting up three from 16 games, form which has seen him linked with moves to a host of high profile clubs from England, Italy and Spain.

Last week Barcelona had emerged as the club in pole position to sign Ribery after statements from Migliaccio which suggested that a deal was all but in place for his client to sign a four-year deal at the Camp Nou.

But Migliaccio has now suggested that Old Trafford could be Ribery's destination, telling Bild: ''If Manchester United sell Cristiano Ronaldo, Sir Alex Ferguson would like to cover that transfer with Ribery's signature.''

Ribery is contracted to Bayern until 2011 and is enjoying his football at the Allianz Arena along with considerable personal and team success; last season Ribery won the German league and cup double and was named as Germany and France's football of the year.

However, the player has also said that he would be surprised if he saw out the end of his contract.

With presidential elections at Real Madrid this summer it seems inevitable that Ronaldo will be again linked with a move to the Bernebeu as he was ahead of the current season.

Whether Sir Alex Ferguson is able - or as determined - to retain the services of the reigning world and European player of the year should Madrid again declare an interest in the Portuguese could lead to a wave of high profile transfer activity.



Source{ Wires

Sunday, March 1, 2009

Turkish Turkcell Super League Sunday Wrap

Trabzonspor catches Sivasspor at the top of the Turkcell Super League with a 1-0 win away to Antalyaspor on Sunday.

Tarbzonspor won the away match thanks to Umut Bulut's goal 15 minutes from time and now only trail Sivasspor on goal difference after they lost 4-2 to Fenerbahce yesterday.

Galatasaray drew level on 40 points with their Istanbul rivals Fenerbahce thanks to a 1-0 win at Konyaspor. Arda Turan scored the only goal after 10 minutes.

Giray Bulak's Konyaspor striker missed a big opportunity when Veysel found him self with the ball and could not pass the Galatasaray keeper DeSantis in the seventh minute of the match.


Elsewhere on Sunday,bottom team Hacettepe, who have won just three games all season, lost again at Ankaragucu with Antonio de Nigris netting the winner, while second-bottom Kocaelispor drew 1-1 with Bursaspor.