Fenerbahçe consolidated its position as title contender with a 2-0 win away to Kocaelispor in a match in which Spain’s Marco Asensio scored the first goal of the game for the Istanbul team, in the closing game of the 20th round of the Turkish Super League.
The match played on Monday at the Yıldız Entegre Stadium in Kocaeli, in which the team coached by Domenico Tedesco was playing to stay in the title race, was decided in favour of the Yellow Canaries thanks to two goals scored at key moments. Fenerbahçe‘s first goal came in first-half stoppage time, when Marco Asensio claimed the ball while on his own during an attacking move.
Talisca heard him and gave him the ball, and Asensio decisively and calculatedly struck an unstoppable left-footed shot that ricocheted off the crossbar and into the net to make it 1-0. It was an absolute cracker of a goal that lifted the players off the bench and sparked euphoria among the Fener’s fans. Just a minute before the goal, Mexican Edson Álvarez had missed a golden chance when he had a shot from the penalty spot that had been deflected into the box, only for Turkish goalkeeper Gökhan Değirmenci to make a strong save.
In the second half, with the score in its favour, Fenerbahçe continued to control the tempo of the game, although the second goal did not come until the 75th minute, scored by Nene Dorgeles, who had come on just 15 minutes earlier to replace Musaba. The Malian striker saw a clear chance from Nelson Semedo’s cross and fired home from the edge of the six-yard box to make it 0-2.
Only 3 points behind leader Galatasaray
The win reinforces Fenerbahçe’s excellent league form and keeps it in second place in the table, taking it to 46 points before the halfway point of the season and just three points off the pace. For its part, Kocaelispor remains in 9th place in the middle of the table with 24 points, having failed to break its negative streak against one of the greats of Turkish football, whom it has not beaten in a league match for 17 years.
As for leader Galatasaray, it beat Kayserispor – second-bottom in the Super Lig standings – 4-0 at home over the weekend to take its tally to 49 points. Opoku opened the scoring in the 7th minute with an own goal, while Osimhen (26th) and Mauro Icardi (90+4th) on penalty, and Gabriel Sara finishing off a pass from Osimhen in the box (60th minute), completed the victory.
Results of the 20th round of the Super League
KASIMPAŞA A.Ş. 0 – 1 SAMSUNSPOR A.Ş.
HESAP.COM ANTALYASPOR 1 – 1 TRABZONSPOR A.Ş.
CORENDON ALANYASPOR 1 – 3 İKAS EYÜPSPOR
RAMS BAŞAKŞEHİR FUTBOL KULÜBÜ 2 – 2 ÇAYKUR RİZESPOR A.Ş.
BEŞİKTAŞ A.Ş. 2 – 1 TÜMOSAN KONYASPOR
GÖZTEPE A.Ş. 2 – 1 MISIRLI.COM.TR FATİH KARAGÜMRÜK
GENÇLERBİRLİĞİ 2 – 1 GAZİANTEP FUTBOL KULÜBÜ A.Ş.
GALATASARAY A.Ş. 4 – 0 ZECORNER KAYSERİSPOR
KOCAELİSPOR 0 – 2 FENERBAHÇE A.Ş.
Turkish league: standings
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Edited and reviewed by:
Pablo Gómez is a specialist in Turkey and has been editor-in-chief of Hispanatolia since 2011. He has been analysing current affairs and geopolitics in Turkey and the surrounding region since 2006.
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