Konyaspor square off against Kasimpasa in Super Lig on Monday evening looking to extend their unbeaten record to seven matches.
While the visitors will consider themselves to be in the running for the title, their hosts sit in the relegation zone after three successive defeats.
Match preview
Such has been Konyaspor's start to the season that they went into their fixture with fellow undefeated side Trabzonspor expecting to record all three points.
That was particularly the case when holding a 2-1 advantage over their 10-man opponents after 46 minutes, but a late own goal proved enough to earn the visitors a share of the spoils.
While Ilhan Palut will insist that it is another point gained and they now possess an unbeaten record which has lasted 10 games since May, it was a clear missed opportunity for Anadolu Kartali.
Having posted three draws in four matches, Palut will feel the need to push for maximum points in this contest, hoping that Endri Cekici can build on his double in the last game.
Despite conceding two goals versus Trabzonspor, Konyaspor still possess the third-best defensive record in the division.
Kasimpasa have encountered some difficult fixtures since the start of August, already playing games against three of the top seven and national giants Galatasaray.
Nevertheless, Senol Can will be disappointed that the club currently occupy 17th position, a consequence of three defeats in a row.
Kasimpasa also failed to score in each of those outings with almost 300 minutes having passed by since their equaliser against Galatasaray on August 29.
On the plus side, four points have come from their three home fixtures, their solitary defeat coming by a 1-0 scoreline versus unbeaten Trabzonspor.
- D
- W
- D
- L
- L
- L
- W
- W
- D
- W
- D
- D
Team News
On the back of their defeat at Alanyaspor, Can will consider making a couple of changes to his Kasimpasa XI.
Haris Hajradinovic was dropped for the first time this season last time out, and the Bosnia-Herzegovina international will expect an immediate recall.
Having failed to score in his last three appearances, Umut Bozok will be fortunate to retain his place in attack.
Despite the frustration of the Trabzonspor game, Palut may stick with the same Konyaspor starting lineup.
While Amar Rahmanovic and Kouka are both pushing for their first starts of the season, they may have to make do with a spot among the replacements.
Kasimpasa possible starting lineup:
Taskiran; Yildirim, Bruma, Brecka, Elmali; Sadiku, Travnik; Erdogan, Eysseric, Hajradinovic; Bozok
Konyaspor possible starting lineup:
Sehic; Skubic, Calik, Bardakci, Guilherme; Gurler, Dikmen, Hadziahmetovic, Cekici, Bytyqi; Cikalleshi
We say: Kasimpasa 1-2 Konyaspor
Given their contrasting trajectories, we can only back one team to win this match. Kasimpasa have the potential to make things interesting, but we feel that the extra belief of the visitors will prove key at the crucial stages.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Konyaspor win with a probability of 36.61%. A win for Kasimpasa had a probability of 35.38% and a draw had a probability of 28%.
The most likely scoreline for a Konyaspor win was 0-1 with a probability of 11.33%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-2 (7.81%) and 0-2 (6.73%). The likeliest Kasimpasa win was 1-0 (11.09%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (13.16%). The actual scoreline of 2-2 was predicted with a 4.5% likelihood.
