Istanbul’s Beşiktaş defeats Trabzonspor, defends top spot

KONYA

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Beşiktaş cruised past Trabzonspor 3-0 on Dec. 7 at Konya Metropolitan Torku Arena, defending its top spot on the Spor Toto Süper League standings.

The black and whites made a rocket start into their match at the Konya Torku Arena and went ahead after 5 minutes when defensive midfielder Veli Kavlak intercepted a poor clearance from Trabzonspor goalkeeper Fatih Öztürk, firing it home before entering the box.

Only 16 minutes later, Beşiktaş achieved a two-goal cushion as Senegalese Demba Ba back-healed Olcay Şahan’s neat pass in from near the 6-yard line for his 8th league goal of the season.  
Trabzonspor tried hard to find their way back into the game in the second half, but failed to break down Beşiktaş’s well-concentrated defense block.

With six minutes to go, striker Cenk Tosun, who replaced Mustafa Pekdemek after a dramatic injury, made it 3-0. The Argentine attacking midfielder José Sosa provided the assist.

 “Due to our stadium’s construction, we are playing our home games in different cities. Beşiktaş fans from Konya created a great atmosphere here tonight that enabled us to stage one of our best games of the season,” said a content Slaven Bilic, the Beşiktaş coach, in a post-game interview.

“Our lads executed well and did not give away any serious changes. After each game, we are growing into a better team but still have a long way to go.”  

Beşiktaş squad later visited Pekdemek, the glass-man on the team who had broken bones in his face after an air-ball struggle in Konya.

Beşiktaş will host Tottenham on Dec. 11 in a UEFA Europa League game as Trabzonspor will face an unbeaten Legia Warszawa in Poland, with both Turkish teams already qualified for the knock-out stage looking for the top spots in their groups.

The win gave Beşiktaş 26 points and the top spot in the league.

Fenerbahçe, the Istanbul side that follows Beşiktaş, narrowly defeated Balıkesirspor, the underdogs doomed to the bottom of the standings, 0-1 in an away league game on Dec. 6.

In the 40th minute, visitors Fenerbahçe’s Portuguese central midfielder Raul Meireles crossed the ball from the right side. The ball hit Balıkesirspor left-back Bülent Cevahir’s foot and found the net.

Hours later, Galatasaray fought a tough battle against Akhisar Belediyespor at its Türk Telekom Arena in Istanbul and pulled off a 2-1 victory.

Bursaspor achieved a spectacular win against Kasımpaşa, another Istanbul side in a home game with five goals against one. The win raised the northwestern team to the fifth spot with 19 points.

Çaykur Rizespor succumbed 0-3 to Kardemir Karabükspor in the Black Sea teams’ clash on Dec. 7, as both are feeling the heat of relegation.