Galatasaray, who were mathematically crowned league champions for the 26th time last week, ended the 2025–2025 season of the Turkish Süper Lig with an unexpected defeat in Istanbul against Kasımpaşa, who won 1–0 in a match marked both by the result and by Okan Buruk’s subsequent comments regarding the new regulations on foreign players in Turkey.
In a closely contested match played on Sunday afternoon at the modest Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Stadium, which was only half-full, the home side scored the only goal of the match in the 26th minute of the first half, when, during an attacking move, Adrian Benedyczak received a pass from Fousseni Diabaté and found himself one-on-one with the Lions’ goalkeeper, Günay Güvenç, whom he beat masterfully to make it 1-0.
In the 37th minute, Leroy Sané had the chance to equalise but his powerful shot crashed against the crossbar. In the second half, in the 59th minute, Benedyczak came close to scoring a second goal for Kasımpaşa in a move very similar to the first, but the shot went wide. Just a minute later, his teammate Diabaté tried a chip, but this time the shot went too high.
In the 80th minute, it was Galatasaray who came close to scoring thanks to a header from Singo… which also hit the crossbar. It was definitely not a lucky night for the champions. Eight minutes later, the home side’s Polish striker once again came close to scoring a second, but his shot from the edge of the box hit the crossbar.
Kasımpaşa were fighting for survival
After the match, Galatasaray manager Okan Buruk tried to explain the result by pointing out that the team had gone into the match with significant physical fatigue accumulated over a long season, which included matches not only in the Super League but also in the Champions League, the Turkish Cup and the Super Cup, and he also noted that several key players were not selected for the match, including Osimhen due to suspension.
Another decisive factor, according to the manager, was that Kasımpaşa approached the match with great intensity as they needed to pick up points to ensure they avoided relegation, a goal for which they were competing on this final matchday alongside three other teams – Antalyaspor, Gençlerbirliği and Eyüpspor – with Fatih Karagümrük and Kayserispor already mathematically relegated to the second tier. Ultimately, it will be Antalyaspor who will join these two in the 1. Lig, despite winning 1-0 at home.
Okan Buruk’s criticism of the new 10+4 foreign player registration rule
Beyond the result, Buruk spent much of his post-match press conference criticising the new regulation known as ’10+4′, which allows Turkish clubs to sign up to 14 foreign players provided that four of them are young players (specifically, those born in or after 2004).
The manager stated that “many clubs are not prepared” to implement this measure and warned of the difficulties it could cause, particularly for teams competing in Europe, according to comments reported by Turkish newspapers such as Cumhuriyet.
“We want young players, but we need young players who are ready and willing to play. This rule will make it difficult for us to achieve our objectives. The rules change every year… They have changed 10 times in recent years. I think this rule will complicate matters for many clubs,” complained Buruk, for whom the new regulations could lead to an increase in the cost of signing young talent.
In other comments highlighted by several Turkish media outlets, the Galatasaray manager stated that the key match in deciding the Süper Lig title this season was the derby against Fenerbahçe on matchday 31, in which the team beat their league rivals 3-0: “That derby decided the champion,” he declared.
Match stats
| KASIMPAŞA | GALATASARAY | |
|---|---|---|
| Total shots | 6 | 9 |
| Shots on target | 3 | 3 |
| Possession | 47% | 53% |
| Fouls | 6 | 5 |
| Yellow cards | 0 | 1 |
| Red cards | 0 | 0 |
| Offsides | 3 | 1 |
| Corners | 2 | 7 |
Results of the 34th round of the Super League
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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