Galatasaray are one and a half steps away from being eliminated from the Europa League after their disconcerting performance in Alkmaar last Thursday against AZ. In the first leg of the play-offs for the round of 16 of the second most important continental competition, Okan Buruk’s team ended up suffering what is so far the heaviest defeat of the season, a final score of 4-1 that will force the Istanbul club to climb a real mountain next week to avoid a bitter elimination.
The Giallorossi stayed in the game until the start of the second half when former Sassuolo player Ayhan was sent off for a second yellow, leaving Galatasaray with ten men. From then on it was a one-sided affair for the Dutch, who now only need to avoid losing by more than 2 goals in the Turkish metropolis to achieve their goal of qualifying. Okan Buruk will therefore try to preserve some of his first team players for the return leg, even if the match against Rizespor, valid for the 24th day of the championship, cannot be underestimated.
After winning the match against Adana 3-0 by default – the visitors had abandoned the field to protest against a dubious penalty awarded to Gala – their advantage over the second-placed team in the standings, Fenerbahçe, remained unchanged. As for Rizespor, on the other hand, if they continue at this pace, gaining salvation should not be a problem. Despite the defeat suffered against Kasimpasa (3-2) a week ago, Ilhan Palut’s men are still well clear of the relegation zone and are counting on the home advantage: they haven’t lost in front of their own fans since September.
Odds comparison
Galatasaray’s victory is quoted at 1.55 on Goldbet and Lottomatica and at 1.53 on Snai. The “Under 3.5” sign is quoted at 1.63 on Goldbet and Lottomatica and at 1.57 on Snai.
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The prediction
Despite the shock of the Alkmaar debacle, we believe that Galatasaray will not make any mistakes in the away game in Rize. In any case, it will not be an easy game for the Super Lig leaders, given the excellent home performance of Palut’s men.
The probable line-ups for Rizespor-Galatasaray
RIZESPOR (4-2-3-1): Grbic; Sahin, Mocsi, Alikulov, Hojer; Olawoyin, Papanikolaou; Akintola, Omur, Ghezzal; Sowe.
GALATASARAY (3-4-1-2): Muslera; Sanchez, Cuesta, Bardakci; Kutucu, Sara, Lemina, Frankowski; Mertens; Osimhen, Morata.
POSSIBLE RESULT: 1-2