Fenerbahce vs Eyupspor – News and Probable Lineups

Fenerbahce is set to face Eyupspor at Sukru Saracoglu Stadium on Sunday afternoon in the sixth round of the Turkish Super Lig, as the Yellow Canaries aim to break their streak of three matches without a victory in all competitions.

The home side has earned seven points from their first five league games, while the visitors have managed only three points and find themselves in the relegation zone after suffering four losses.

Match overview

The start of the season for Fenerbahce has been challenging due to their commitments in Europe and a remarkable situation involving manager Ismail Kartal.

The 65-year-old coach announced his resignation following Fenerbahce’s 1-1 draw with Roma in the Champions League after a water bottle was thrown at him from the crowd. However, club president Aziz Yildirim insisted that Kartal would continue in his role.

This incident occurred just days before Fenerbahce played to a goalless draw against Gaziantep, meaning the Yellow Canaries have not secured a win in their last two league outings, having previously lost 2-1 at home to Besiktas, marking their only league defeat thus far.

Currently sitting six points behind the leaders, Fenerbahce must swiftly return to winning form to keep their hopes of breaking a long-standing league-title drought alive, and their historical success in this fixture, along with the visitors’ poor performance, should bolster their confidence ahead of Sunday’s match.

Eyupspor has struggled to find the net, having scored just twice in five league encounters—no side has fewer goals—and they have lost four of those matches. Their single win came against Alanyaspor at the end of August.

Their latest setback was a 2-0 defeat at home to Rizespor, with Ali Sowe scoring the opener in the first half and Emrecan Bulut doubling the lead in stoppage time.

Eyupspor also failed to score against Besiktas, Gaziantep, and Corum earlier in the season, highlighting the significant attacking issues facing head coach Ozhan Pulat.

Nevertheless, there is some optimism for the visitors heading into this matchup, as they managed to earn a draw in the corresponding fixture last season, having led 2-0 before Fenerbahce pulled back to finish 3-3 in Istanbul.

Team News

Marco Asensio is anticipated to return to the matchday squad, although he may not be risked for the entire 90 minutes as he has only recently returned to training following a muscle injury.

Meanwhile, Jayden Oosterwolde remains sidelined due to an Achilles issue, while Mert Hakan Yandas is serving a suspension and Amara Diouf is unavailable.

Eyupspor is without Abdelhamid Sabiri and Taskin Ilter, both suffering from muscle injuries, which limits Pulat’s options in midfield and forward positions.

Ahmed Abdullahi is likely to lead the attack, while Massanga Matondo is expected to play in midfield.

Fenerbahce probable starting XI:

Ederson; Muldur, Skriniar, Ake, Brown; Guendouzi, Kante; Greenwood, Yuksek, Akturkoglu; Fool

Eyupspor probable starting XI:

Moldavian; Ulvan, El Yamiq, Jules, Giordano; Thank you; Boutobba, Costa, Raux-Yao, Michalak; Abdullahi

Fenerbahce has not been impressive in their recent outings by their own standards, but the attacking struggles of their opponents make it difficult to back Eyupspor for goals in this encounter.

The visitors did perform a memorable comeback in this fixture last season, but the Yellow Canaries are expected to have sufficient control and attacking prowess to secure the three points without facing too much trouble.