Trabzonspor provided one of the biggest surprises of recent matchdays in Turkey’s Süper Lig by thrashing Galatasaray 4–0 at the Papara Park stadium in the city of Trabzon, on Turkey’s Black Sea coast. The home side had all but sealed the victory by half-time and confirmed their superiority after the break, in Thomas Reis’s debut as the new manager of the “Black Sea Storm”.
The star of the show was, without a doubt, Mohamed Salah, the star signing of the season, who scored three of the four goals and also provided an assist for another. The Egyptian striker opened the scoring in the 4th minute with a spectacular solo run starting from midfield, in which he ended up taking on and beating Uğurcan Çakır with a low shot to make it 1–0, sparking euphoria amongst the home fans.
Galatasaray pushed for an equaliser and threatened the opposition’s goal on several occasions, but in the 39th minute, Trabzon’s side scored their second. Following a quick free-kick, Salah received the ball on the right-hand side of the box and played a pass across to the opposite flank to Noah Saviolo, who beat the visiting goalkeeper with a low, diagonal shot that nestled just inside the far post.
Reis’s side continued to attack: three minutes later Francolino scored a goal, but it was ruled out for offside; shortly before half-time, Francolino popped up again to steal the ball from the defence and deliver a masterful pass into the box to Salah, who simply had to tap the ball into the net to make it 3–0.
Okan Buruk and Ugochukwu sent off with straight red cards
After the half-time break, Galatasaray tried to mount a comeback, but the Istanbul side could not find a way to reduce the deficit. The team managed by Okan Buruk struggled to create any real danger or turn their attacks into goal-scoring opportunities, and the nerves got the better of the Istanbul side’s manager: in the 72nd minute, he was shown a red card for protesting following a heavy challenge by Stefan Savić on Leroy Sané.
With Buruk no longer on the bench, Galatasaray ended up conceding a fourth goal in the 80th minute, when, after Trabzonspor launched a counter-attack from their own area, Salah received the ball in midfield and set off on a solo run towards Çakır, beating him in a move almost identical to that of the first goal.
To cap off a night to forget, in the closing minutes Ugochukwu was shown a yellow card for a heavy challenge which, following a VAR review, was upgraded to a red card and immediate sending-off, leaving Galatasaray a man down, though there was little they could do by then.
This bitter defeat marks Galatasaray’s first league setback of the season, leaving the reigning champions on 13 points and with many questions about their performance, although they still top the table, whilst Trabzonspor move up to 10 points and sit provisionally in fifth place.
Reis celebrates his debut with a thrashing
For Thomas Reis, the victory held special significance as it was his first match in charge of Trabzonspor. The German manager acknowledged that he had barely had time to prepare for the match, and therefore highlighted the good work done by his players.
“We’ve only been together for a very short time and there was little time to prepare. We spoke to the players and drew up the match plan together. We have very experienced players. Fabinho, Salah… They put in a fantastic performance and I think we did a good job in a short space of time,” explained Reis after the match, in comments reported by the Turkish press.
The manager acknowledged, however, that some players showed signs of fatigue in the closing stages of the match and noted that the team will use the upcoming international break to work on both tactical and physical aspects. Speaking about Salah, one of Trabzonspor’s international stars, Reis emphasised that the whole team worked to create the necessary space for him in the match against Galatasaray.
Match stats
| Trabzonspor | Galatasaray | |
|---|---|---|
| Total shots | 6 | 12 |
| Shots on target | 4 | 2 |
| Possession | 45% | 55% |
| Fouls | 15 | 16 |
| Yellow cards | 4 | 1 |
| Red cards | 0 | 1 |
| Offsides | 4 | 0 |
| Corners | 1 | 5 |
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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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