Galatasaray vs Besiktas Preview & Prediction | 2024 Turkish Super Cup
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To kick off the domestic season in Turkey we have a fiery Istanbul derby between Galatasaray and Besiktas at the home of Istanbul Basaksehir with both sides looking to lay down a marker and win the first piece of silverware of the 2024/25 season.
KICK-OFF DATE/TIME: Saturday 3rd August, 2024 - UK – 6:45pm / US ET – 1:45pm / US PT – 11:45am
HOW TO WATCH ON TV: UK – N/A / US – N/A
HOW TO WATCH ONLINE: UK – N/A / US – N/A
GALATASARAY PREVIEW: DOMINANT GALA LOOK TO START STRONGLY
Galatasaray won one of the most competitive title races that has ever happened anywhere in football last season as they defended their Turkish Super Lig crown by picking up 102 points, finishing three points above their Intercontinental Derby rivals Fenerbahce.
Still under the management of Okan Buruk, Gala have had a quieter transfer window in terms of the amount of incomings but the signing of Michy Batshuayi from the aforementioned Fenerbahce has already caused a stir as we near the start of the 2024/25 campaign.
BESIKTAS PREVIEW: BESIKTAS HEAD TO BASAKSEHIR
This summer, Besiktas have taken the decision to appoint former Feyenoord and Rangers manager Giovanni van Bronckhorst as their new boss. The Dutchman is looking to rebuild Kara Kartallar after a disappointing sixth placed finish in the Super Lig last season.
Over the summer, Besiktas have been a lot more active than Galatasaray and they have picked up a few interesting additions that you would imagine would thrive in Turkey, such as former Lazio captain Ciro Immobile as well as former Portugal international Rafa Silva.
GALATASARAY TEAM NEWS: ADDITIONAL HEADING HERE
Galatasaray have a few decisions to make after their magnificent campaign and it is simply as to whether too stick with some of the ageing stalwarts of that side, such as the likes of Hakim Ziyech and Dries Mertens, or begin to move away to something else.
For example, whether Batshuayi will get a start or not against one of his former clubs, or whether Okan Buruk will see this as an opportunity to reward his league winners with another so-called ‘final’.
PREDICTED XI (4-2-3-1): Fernando Muslera; Dubois, Nelsson, Bardakci, Kohn; Lucas Torreira, Demirbay; Ziyech, Akturkoglu, Zaha; Mauro Icardi
UNAVAILABLE: Davinson Sanchez (Break)
QUESTIONABLE:
BESIKTAS TEAM NEWS: UNDERSTANDING WHAT GVB WANTS
It will be interesting to find out what Giovanni van Bronckhorst will elect to do with what is a massive squad at Besiktas. Certain players, such as Semih Kilicsoy or Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, appear destined to leave so may well be left out to protect their market value.
They do have one injury issue for this one with Bosnia-Herzegovina international Amir Hadiahmetovic out with an ACL injury. We should see competitive debuts for the aforementioned Immobile and Silva as well as Al-Musrati and Gabriel Paulista.
PREDICTED XI (4-2-3-1): Gunok; Svensson, Gabriel, Colley, Masuaku; Uysal, Fernandes; Rashica, Silva, Kilicsoy; Immobile
UNAVAILABLE: Hadziahmetovic (Injured)
QUESTIONABLE:
GALATASARAY VS BESIKTAS PREDICTION
This is a really intriguing one because, on the face of it, this is a team that managed over 100 points in the Super Lig last season up against a team that didn’t even make the UEFA Europa Conference League qualification spots. The appointment of Van Bronckhorst may suggest improvement for Besiktas but the underwhelming job he did at Rangers will not fill many with confidence and this could end up actually being quite a comfortable Galatasaray victory.
GALATASARAY VS BESIKTAS TIP: GALATASARAY TO WIN
