Preview: Istanbul Basaksehir vs. Fatih Karagumruk - prediction, team news, lineups

Third-placed Istanbul Basaksehir are eyeing a top-two finish in the Super Lig and on Saturday, they will look to claim a fifth consecutive league win when they play host to Fatih Karagumruk.

Meanwhile, the visitors occupy a mid-table position and will be aiming to clinch successive victories after beating Sivasspor last weekend.

Match preview

Istanbul Basaksehir claimed an important home victory last weekend as they edged out second-placed Konyaspor to close the gap to their opponents to just three points.

At half time, it seemed as though Konyaspor were heading to victory after Zymer Bytyqi opened the scoring, but Istanbul Basaksehir levelled the encounter through Fredrik Gulbrandsen before a Musa Cagiran own goal ensured that the three points would go to the hosts.

With second place in sight, Istanbul Basaksehir are beginning to dream of place in next season's Champions League qualifying rounds.

With nine wins from their 13 home league games this season, Saturday's hosts will fancy their chances of picking up three more points against Fatih Karagumruk.

Having scored 15 of their 22 home goals in the second half of games this term, Istanbul Basaksehir could be at their most dangerous in the second period on Saturday.

As for Fatih Karagumruk, they are sitting comfortably in 11th position but they will be looking to match the eighth-placed finish that they achieved last term in what was their first campaign back in the top flight since the 1983-84 season.

Their recent form has been mixed with their last six league games resulting in three wins and three defeats, highlighting the inconsistency that has led to them occupying a mid-table position.

Last weekend, Fatih Karagumruk claimed a narrow 1-0 home victory against Sivasspor thanks to Fabio Borini's second-half spot kick.

As they head on their travels for Saturday's fixture, their recent away form will offer little encouragement after losing their last three away matches, with 11 goals being shipped in those games.

Despite their recent away struggles, Volkan Demirel's side can take confidence from the 3-1 win that they achieved in the reverse fixture against Istanbul Basaksehir in October.

Team News

Istanbul Basaksehir are without the services of Mahmut Tekdemir, who is ruled out through injury.

Pizzi, Trezeguet and Salih Ucan all missed the contest with Konyaspor due to injury issues, and the trio remain doubts for Saturday's contest.

Meanwhile, Deniz Turuc and Stefano Okaka will be available after serving their respective one-match suspensions.

As for the hosts, injury issues are expected to rule Davide Biraschi and Kerim Frei out of Saturday's contest.

After beating Sivasspor last weekend, Demirel could name an unchanged lineup for the Istanbul Basaksehir clash.

Borini scored his first league goal of the season last weekend with the 30-year-old looking to build upon that winner when he starts at the weekend.

Istanbul Basaksehir possible starting lineup:
Babacan; Sahiner, Ndayishimiye, Duarte, Kaldirim; Gurler, Aleksic, Cigerci, Ozcan, Gulbrandsen; Okaka

Fatih Karagumruk possible starting lineup:
Viviano; Dursun, Luckassen, Bekaroglu, Erkin; Mor, Durmaz, Biglia, Bistrovic, Musa; Borini

We say: Istanbul Basaksehir 2-1 Fatih Karagumruk

Although Fatih Karagumruk emerged victorious in the reverse fixture, we think that they will fall short on Saturday when they face an Istanbul Basaksehir side who usually fare well on home turf.

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