Beşiktaş extends stay atop Süper Lig table

ISTANBUL

Beşiktaş beat 10-man Galatasaray with a 2-0 win in a Turkish Süper Lig game on Jan. 17’s night to remain atop the league standings after 18 games.

Neither team was able to break the deadlock in the first half of the Istanbul derby at Beşiktaş’s Vodafone Park.

The 58th minute of the game marked a turning point when Galatasaray’s Senegalese forward Mbaye Diagne was shown a red card after a foul against Francisco Montero to leave the visiting side with 10 players on the pitch.

Josef De Souza scored a close-range opener for Beşiktaş in the 79th minute, while Georges-Kevin N’Koudou added another in the dying minutes of the game.

Beşiktaş with its victory increased its points tally to 38 to lead three points ahead of Fenerbahçe, which was to play Ankaragücü at home late on Jan. 18.

Galatasaray coach Fatih Terim was critical of Diagne after the match.

“Having a player sent off in the 58th minute of the match is not an event that any coach would want or expect,” he said, adding that he agreed with the referee on the decision.

“In these weather conditions, it is not easy to play with 10 men on a heavy pitch. It is not easy to get a result when you are a man down in derby games. We have fulfilled our plans in a defensive sense, but it cannot be said that we are successful in the offense. Obviously, this saddens me. We need to be much better in the front.”

On the other hand, Beşiktaş coach Sergen Yalçın was all praises for his players.

“We prepared well, we analyzed our opponent well, and our game plan was correct,” Yalçın said.

“Our guys played devotedly both in offense and defense. I thank and congratulate them all,” he added.

While Beşiktaş supporters enjoy the derby victory, Fenebahçe fans are eagerly waiting for their club’s latest signing.

German-Turkish midfielder Mesut Özil arrived in Istanbul late on Jan. 17 to complete his move to Fenerbahçe from Arsenal.

Özil joined Arsenal in 2013 after three successful seasons at Spanish giant Real Madrid, where he helped the team win a La Liga title, a Spanish Cup and a Spanish Super Cup.

With 44 goals and 77 assists in 254 games in England, he played a critical role as Arsenal won four FA Cup trophies and reached the UEFA Europa League final in a span of six years.

However, amid a dip in form and fractious relations with current manager Mikel Arteta and his predecessor Unai Emery, Özil has gone from having limited playing time to being completely frozen out of the Arsenal first team.

Left out of this season’s Premier League and Europa League squads, he has not made an appearance for the London side since last March.

Elsewhere in the Süper Lig over the weekend, Gençlerbirliği lost 3-1 at home to Karagümrük, Göztepe ended its slump with a 3-2 victory at Erzurumspor, Gaziantep beat Kayserispor with 2-1, Trabzonspor salvaged one point at Antalyaspor with a late goal in a 1-1 draw, Hatayspor made a 2-0 win at Denizlispor and Malatyaspor defeated Rizespor with 4-1.