Fenerbahçe to host Beşiktaş in Istanbul derby

ISTANBUL

In what promises to be a thrilling encounter, two of Türkiye’s football giants, Fenerbahçe and Beşiktaş, are set to lock horns on April 2 in the Turkish Süper Lig.

Fenerbahçe is currently in second place in the league, while Beşiktaş is in third place, trailing its city rival by five points. Therefore, the match will be crucial for both teams’ title hopes.

Fenerbahçe has been in good form lately in the league, winning six of its last seven matches, drawing once.

Beşiktaş, on the other hand, is on a three-match winning streak, hoping to extend its run to cut the gap with its two city rivals in the league.

Beşiktaş coach Şenol Güneş is aware of the importance of the derby game.

“It will be a good match,” he told reporters. “If we can have a good result against Fenerbahçe, we can start talking about our title chances.”

A disadvantage for Güneş and his players will be the lack of Beşiktaş fans’ support in the game since no away fans will be allowed in the Ülker Stadium following a decision by the provincial security board.

Fenerbahçe, meanwhile, banned seven of its supporters from its games, citing their unruly behavior in a Europa League match against Sevilla on March 16.

“Our team fought responsibly until the last moment to advance, and our fans shared this responsibility and gave our team unparalleled support without stopping for a moment,” Fenerbahçe said in a written statement.

“It is not acceptable to damage this unity and struggle by throwing objects on the field in the minutes when Fenerbahçe had the upper hand in the game,” the club added.

“We would like to inform you that seven people, who have been personally identified by our club in connection with this issue, have been banned from entering our stadium for an indefinite period of time.”

The game will be played amid a debate over a decision by the Turkish Football Federation (TFF) regarding two teams that withdrew from the league.

Hatayspor and Gaziantep, based in two cities hit by the Feb. 6 deadly earthquakes, withdrew from the league, reducing the total number of active teams to 17.

The TFF ruled last month that the opponents of the teams that withdrew will be deemed victorious in the remaining games, drawing the ire of Beşiktaş and some other clubs.

Beşiktaş, which lost to Hatayspor 2-1 in the first half of the league and drew 1-1 with Gaziantep, seeks for annulment of the results of the two teams’ all matches, arguing that the clubs who did not play against them hold an unfair advantage with the current decision.

The Süper Lig Clubs Union met on March 29 on the issue, with six other clubs participating in the meeting supporting Beşiktaş’s argument, with four against.

The chair of the union and Fenerbahçe president, Ali Koç, told reporters after the meeting that both sides have strong arguments and that they will ask the TFF to evaluate the situation again and reach a final verdict.

Süper Lig leader Galatasaray, meanwhile, will host fourth-placed Adana Demirspor on April 1, aiming to return to winning ways.

The club lost 2-1 to Konyaspor in its last league game, following a winning streak of 14 matches.

In the week’s other matches, Başakşehir hosts Ankaragücü and Trabzonspor plays Kayserispor at home on April 1.

In April 2’s games, Konyaspor visits Ümraniyespor and Giresunspor takes on Alanyaspor.

Karagümrük will travel to city rival Istanbulspor on April 3 in the week’s final match.