Rizespor vs Galatasaray

In an attempt to keep their advantage at the top of the Turkish Super Lig standings, Galatasaray will travel to play Caykur Rizespor at the Caykur Didi Stadium.

The visitors will be looking to get behind a difficult week that includes controversy in their Europa League encounter against Adana Demirspor and a crushing defeat to AZ Alkmaar.

Despite contentious conditions, Galatasaray secured maximum points against bottom-place Adana, maintaining their six-point lead at the top of the Super Lig.

As anticipated, Cimbom controlled from the beginning and took the lead in the 12th minute when Dries Mertens was fouled and Alvaro Morata scored a penalty.

Investigations later showed that the club chairman, Murat Sancak, who has since resigned because of the fallout, gave the order for Adana's players to leave the field in protest of the penalty call, which resulted in the match being abandoned just sixteen minutes later.

Away from local drama, Galatasaray lost badly to AZ Alkmaar of the Netherlands in the Europa League quarterfinal playoffs on Thursday, 4-1. The Turkish champions now have a difficult challenge ahead of them in the rematch on Thursday.

Before shifting their focus to the Europa League, Cimbom will prioritize the Super Lig as they travel to face Rizespor, aiming to maintain their six-point advantage over title contenders Fenerbahce. Historically, Galatasaray has enjoyed significant dominance in this fixture, securing 33 victories out of their 50 encounters with Rizespor, including the last five consecutive wins, all in the Super Lig.

Meanwhile, Rizespor are struggling after suffering back-to-back league defeats, most recently a 3-2 loss to Kasimpasa, which followed a similar setback against Fenerbahce. These results have seen Ilhan Palut's side drop to 12th in the standings, with 27 points from 22 matches, leaving them just seven points above the relegation zone. A third consecutive loss could further endanger their position, and facing a dominant Galatasaray side at this juncture only compounds their difficulties.

However, Rizespor will draw inspiration from their strong home form, having remained unbeaten in their last nine competitive home matches. The support of their home crowd could prove crucial as they seek to halt their slide and challenge the league leaders.