Trabzon to take on bottom place Kocaeli
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Hürriyet Daily News
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Aralık 06, 2008 00:00
ISTANBUL - Turkcell Super League's round 14 stages an encounter between the first and the last teams in the standings. Trabzonspor will be looking to continue its league lead as well as its unbeaten streak, while Kocaelispor will be hoping to get off last spot. Meanwhile, other contenders, Beşiktaş and Galatasaray, play with teams from Ankara
Trabzonspor hopes to have an even happier bayram by extending its Turkcell Super League lead when it meets Kocaelispor on Sunday.
The Trabzonspor-Kocaelispor game will be a clash of the opposite ends of the league. While Trabzonspor tops the league, three points clear of second-place Beşiktaş, Kocaelispor is struggling to avoid relegation.
Although continuing a convincing form of six consecutive games without a defeat, Trabzonspor managed only two draws in its last two outings, raising questions of a slump in form. However, two draws against fairly solid teams, Sivasspor and Kayserispor, are not big losses according to defender Giray Kaçar.
"We played well in both of those games," said the defender, who is likely to start the game, due to first-choice player Egemen Korkmaz’s red card suspension. "We could have won both games, but we just could not score."
"Sometimes we face problems, which is normal, you cannot win every game," he added. "Furthermore, the quality of the league is high, every team can be beaten. So I think we are still doing well." Leaving the 3-0 loss at Galatasaray aside, Trabzonspor is unbeaten in games against the top seven teams of the league. However, it should be added that it could settle for draws against Beşiktaş, Sivasspor and Kayserispor, while only beating Ankaraspor. But Trabzonspor made the most of the games against the lower teams, while its rivals often slumped. To continue that, it needs a win over Kocaelispor.
No pushover
Looking at the current league position may indicate that Kocaelispor would be an easy hunt for Trabzon, but the Marmara side wants to prove that it is no pushover. Ending a dismal seven-week losing run, Kocaelispor has found form of late. It has collected eight points in five games since early November.
"Every week we are getting better," said coach Yılmaz Vural. "We are less stressed than our opponents, but it will be a hard game."
In Sunday’s other game, Galatasaray will play at Ankaragücü in its third consecutive encounter against sides from the capital. The Lions dropped two points with a goalless draw against Ankaraspor and beat Hacettepe 3-1, respectively.
Second-place Beşiktaş welcomes another side from Ankara on Saturday, as it takes on sixth place Ankaraspor. After losing the Fenerbahçe derby 2-1, the Black Eagles will be looking to bounce back this weekend.
The Trabzonspor-Kocaelispor game will be a clash of the opposite ends of the league. While Trabzonspor tops the league, three points clear of second-place Beşiktaş, Kocaelispor is struggling to avoid relegation.
Although continuing a convincing form of six consecutive games without a defeat, Trabzonspor managed only two draws in its last two outings, raising questions of a slump in form. However, two draws against fairly solid teams, Sivasspor and Kayserispor, are not big losses according to defender Giray Kaçar.
"We played well in both of those games," said the defender, who is likely to start the game, due to first-choice player Egemen Korkmaz’s red card suspension. "We could have won both games, but we just could not score."
"Sometimes we face problems, which is normal, you cannot win every game," he added. "Furthermore, the quality of the league is high, every team can be beaten. So I think we are still doing well." Leaving the 3-0 loss at Galatasaray aside, Trabzonspor is unbeaten in games against the top seven teams of the league. However, it should be added that it could settle for draws against Beşiktaş, Sivasspor and Kayserispor, while only beating Ankaraspor. But Trabzonspor made the most of the games against the lower teams, while its rivals often slumped. To continue that, it needs a win over Kocaelispor.
No pushover
Looking at the current league position may indicate that Kocaelispor would be an easy hunt for Trabzon, but the Marmara side wants to prove that it is no pushover. Ending a dismal seven-week losing run, Kocaelispor has found form of late. It has collected eight points in five games since early November.
"Every week we are getting better," said coach Yılmaz Vural. "We are less stressed than our opponents, but it will be a hard game."
In Sunday’s other game, Galatasaray will play at Ankaragücü in its third consecutive encounter against sides from the capital. The Lions dropped two points with a goalless draw against Ankaraspor and beat Hacettepe 3-1, respectively.
Second-place Beşiktaş welcomes another side from Ankara on Saturday, as it takes on sixth place Ankaraspor. After losing the Fenerbahçe derby 2-1, the Black Eagles will be looking to bounce back this weekend.