Bosnia And Herzegovina
Czech Republic
Hungary
Indonesia
South Africa
South Korea
United Arab Emirates

Fenerbahcevs.Adana Demirspor

sportsmole.co.uk, 8 August 2024, 18:20
After last term's near miss, Fenerbahce begin this season's Turkish Super Lig title chase against Adana Demirspor at Sukru Saracoglu Stadium on Saturday.

Supporters will undoubtedly troop in to catch Jose Mourinho's first league match in charge of the side even though Adana's new boss Michael Valkanis will be keen to ruin the mood in Istanbul.

Match preview

Mourinho was not in situ last season when Fener accrued 99 points but still fell short in the title race, with Galatasaray ending the campaign with 102 points.

Just over two months since the gut-wrenching culmination of the 2023-24 season, Mourinho aims to pick up his players for another shot at a first Super Lig title since the 2013-14 and 20th league crown.

Unlike their opponent, Mourinho's men have already played competitively this term, with the Yellow Canaries participating in Champions League qualifying before gameweek one's match.

Having secured progress at Lugano's expense in the previous round, a first-leg loss to Lille in France leaves Mourinho's side at risk of continental elimination before next week's reverse fixture.

Given the financial benefits of featuring in Europe's premier club competition, prioritising August 13's match on home soil could tempt Fenerbahce's Portuguese manager into making alterations.

Adana will hope to play a Fener side not at full power on Saturday keen to get off to a commendable start in 2024-25 under a different regime.

Valkanis replaced Hikmet Karaman just over a month ago, and the Australian manager aims to start his spell in Turkiye with a positive result.

Last season brought about a decline in overall performance from Mavi Simsekler after consecutive top-half finishes under Vincenzo Montella, with fourth place in 2022-23 the club's peak under the Italian.

That followed a ninth-place final position under the former Italy striker, who elevated the Adana-based club after taking over in the 2021-22 season.

The club's supporters will hope for an improved year under their Australian boss as they seek performances and results to remind them of the recent years under Montella.

However, the away side must improve on last season's wretched road run that saw them notch one win in 19 matches away from Adana, drawing 10 and losing eight.

Fenerbahce form (all competitions):

L

W

W

W

W

L

Team News

Edin Dzeko netted 21 league goals for Fener last season and this season's four in three competitive games suggest the experienced striker is still firing on all cylinders this term.

Fred is not expected back for a few more weeks after sustaining a ligament injury, pointing to a start for Rade Krunic.

There are no reported injuries for Adana Demirspor on the opening day, giving the away side a full squad heading to Istanbul.

With last season's leading goalscorers M'Baye Niang (eight goals), Emre Akbaba and Mario Balotelli (both seven) no longer at the club for different reasons, Valkanis will seek new on-field leaders to take responsibility for the Blue Lightnings.

Fenerbahce possible starting lineup:

Livakovic; Osayi-Samuel, Djiku, Soyuncu, Kadioglu; Szymanski, Yuksek, Krunic; Kahveci, Dzeko, Saint-Maximin

Adana Demirspor possible starting lineup:

Karakus; Sari, Guler, Gravillon, Mohammadi; Shehu, Rodriguez, Michut; Aybetov, Barasi, Nourani

We say: Fenerbahce 2-0 Adana Demirspor

Previews by email

Top News

16 February 2025 talksport.com Arsenal cult hero Luis Boa Morte and Middlesbrough legend George Boateng are both set to be interviewed by Blackburn, talkSPORT understands. 16 February 2025 sportsmole.co.uk With a Champions League last-16 tie against either Barcelona or Liverpool on the line, Benfica and Monaco reconvene for the second leg of their playoff battle on Tuesday night at the Estadio da Luz. 16 February 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester City will be aiming to overturn a first-leg deficit when they head to Spain on Wednesday for the second leg of their Champions League knockout round playoff with Real Madrid. 16 February 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Real Madrid will be bidding to book their spot in the knockout round of the Champions League when they welcome Manchester City to Bernabeu for the second leg of their playoff clash on Wednesday night. 16 February 2025 talksport.com The Premier League has two mouthwatering games on Sunday and talkSPORT has all the latest. 16 February 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Taking a slender lead to San Siro, Feyenoord endeavour to finish the job on AC Milan when they reconvene for Tuesday's Champions League playoff second leg. 16 February 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United centre-back Lisandro Martinez has confirmed that he has undergone surgery on the severe knee injury that he suffered against Crystal Palace earlier this month. 16 February 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Marcus Rashford is reportedly still hopeful of completing a 'dream switch' to Barcelona during this summer's transfer window. 16 February 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United are reportedly prepared to make a €150m (£125m) move for Atletico Madrid forward Julian Alvarez during this summer's transfer window. 16 February 2025 sportsmole.co.uk All transfer business is done and dusted for this season, but that doesn't stop clubs from preparing ahead for next season. 16 February 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Hatayspor vs. Alanyaspor (Sunday, 10.30am) Round 24 of the 2024-25 Turkish Super Lig campaign pits relegation candidates Hatayspor against mid-table Alanyaspor at the Mersin Stadyumu on Sunday evening. 16 February 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Nijmegen vs. Almere City (Sunday, 11.15am) Aiming to make it back-to-back wins and move closer to escaping the foot of the Eredivisie table, Almere City will travel to the Goffertstadion on Sunday to take on NEC. 16 February 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Espanyol vs. Athletic Bilbao (Sunday, 1.00pm) Athletic Bilbao will be aiming to stretch their unbeaten run in La Liga to 15 matches when they head to Espanyol on Sunday. 16 February 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Fiorentina vs. Como (Sunday, 11.30am) Top-four contenders Fiorentina will aim to boost their hopes of European qualification on Sunday, as they welcome Serie A strugglers Como to Stadio Franchi. 16 February 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Werder Bremen vs. Hoffenheim (Sunday, 2.30pm) European hopefuls Werder Bremen will welcome relegation-threatened Hoffenheim to Weserstadion on Sunday in their 22nd Bundesliga game of the season. 16 February 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Montpellier vs. Lyon (Sunday, 2.00pm) Looking to give their survival hopes a major boost, Montpellier HSC will welcome Champions League-chasing Lyon to Stade de la Mosson-Mondial 98 on Sunday afternoon for a Ligue 1 battle. 16 February 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Hearts vs. Rangers (Sunday, 12.00pm) Hearts host Rangers in the Scottish Premiership this weekend, hoping to boost their chances of qualifying for European football next season. 16 February 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Liverpool vs. Wolves (Sunday, 2.00pm) With or without Arne Slot on the touchline, Liverpool's pursuit of Premier League stardom when Wolverhampton Wanderers stop over at Anfield on Sunday afternoon. 16 February 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Liverpool could face a difficult test at Anfield on Sunday against Wolverhampton Wanderers and will have to show improvements from last time out, Reds expert David Lynch has argued. 16 February 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United attacker Amad Diallo took to Instagram and confirmed he is set to be sidelined for some time after suffering an injury in training. 15 February 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Liverpool centre-back Ibrahima Konate has hinted that he would be happy to stay at Anfield despite interest from Paris Saint-Germain. 15 February 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Liverpool have reportedly accepted that goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher will leave in the summer transfer window, and are said to be willing to do business for a fee of £30-40m. 15 February 2025 sportsmole.co.uk The primary job of a goalkeeper is to keep the ball out of the back of their own net, but there are times, especially in the modern era, where we see some shot-stoppers contributing to goals at the right end of the pitch. 15 February 2025 talksport.com Arsenal might be struggling for strikers but one former wonderkid is loving life away from north London. 15 February 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Arsenal should not give any thought to signing an "out of shape" free agent to solve their attacking shortage, Gunners expert Charles Watts has told Sports Mole. 15 February 2025 talksport.com Xabi Alonso continues to haunt his former employers Bayern Munich. 15 February 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Despite being by far the better side, Bayer Leverkusen were held to a 0-0 draw with Bayern Munich at BayArena on Saturday in an anticlimactic six pointer in the Bundesliga title race. 15 February 2025 talksport.com Aaron Lennon believes Tottenham's clash against Manchester United could be a preview of the Europa League final. 15 February 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Everton won their fourth Premier League match in five as they beat hosts Crystal Palace 2-1 at Selhurst Park on Saturday evening. 15 February 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Barcelona head coach Hansi Flick could make two changes to his XI for Monday's La Liga contest with Rayo Vallecano.
there is nothing here yet