Trabzonspor welcome the most in-form team currently in the Turkish Super Lig to the Medical Park Stadyumu on Saturday, when 13th-placed Kasimpasa travel to Trabzon.
The visitors are currently on a six-game winning run in all competitions, their best string of results all season, helping them climb away from the relegation zone, while Trabzonspor still hold a healthy lead at the top, nine points clear of second-placed Konyaspor.
Match preview
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Abdullah Avci's side got back to winning ways last time out, after consecutive 1-1 draws, by defeating struggling Turkish giants Galatasaray by a scoreline of 2-1.
Alexandru Cicaldau gave Galatasaray the advantage at the halfway stage in that match and Trabzonspor left it late to rescue themselves from defeat, with Anastasios Bakasetas and Edin Visca striking in the final 10 minutes to turn the game around.
Trabzonspor have still only tasted defeat once this season, and they have had to show a spirited character to earn five points from their last three games, having fallen behind in each of those matches.
Avci will be keen for his side to keep a clean sheet on Saturday, but his team can be confident that they will not concede more than one goal, as they have only let in two goals in a single game on three occasions this campaign.
Kasimpasa could not be in better form heading into their clash with the league leaders, but despite their perfect run of results since the end of December, they remain just three points above the relegation zone.
However, they will be sure that they can secure their place in the top flight if they continue their good form, and that is what they managed to do by earning a 3-1 win against Kayserispor last time out.
An own goal by Yasir Subasi followed by strikes from Umut Bozok and Ahmet Engin ensured of the three points for Hikmet Karaman's side, who initially fell behind in the 12th minute of that match.
Prior to last month, Kasimpasa had not won an away game all season, but victories in their last two games on their travels gives them a boost ahead of Saturday's outing, but they remain the underdogs for this clash.
The reverse fixture between these two sides was a tight affair, with Trabzonspor just edging the match in their favour with a 1-0 win thanks to Bakasetas's second-half strike.
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Team News
Abdulkadir Omur and Bengali-Fode Koita will remain sidelined for another few weeks due to injury, while major goal threat Bakasetas will be absent due to coronavirus.
Attacker Gervinho has not featured for Trabzonspor since October and he will continue to recover from a cruciate ligament injury, not expecting to make his return to the pitch during this campaign.
Centre-back Huseyin Turkmen was substituted off the pitch after just 32 minutes against Giresunspor and Tymoteusz Puchacz came into the starting back four last time out, and that defensive line is likely to remain the same.
Kasimpasa will be without centre-back Jeffrey Bruma, midfielder Loret Sadiku and attacking midfielder Valentin Eysseric on Saturday due to injury, with all three players expected to return in a few weeks.
Centre-back Ryan Donk will serve a one-match suspension against Trabzonspor after picking up his fourth yellow card of the campaign against Kayserispor, meaning that Tomas Brecka could be partnered by versatile midfielder Tarkan Serbest in the heart of defence.
Bozok is aiming to score in his third consecutive match this weekend, and the loanee from Lorient has been by far Kasimpasa's biggest goal threat this season, netting 11 times in 23 appearances.
Trabzonspor possible starting lineup:
Cakir; Puchacz, Hugo, Denswil, Peres; Ozdemir, Tokoz; Nwakaeme, Siopis, Visca; Cornelius
Kasimpasa possible starting lineup:
Taskiran; Elmali, Serbest, Brecka, Hadergjonaj; Haspolat; Engin, Travnik, Hajradinovic, Ouannes; Bozok
We say: Trabzonspor 1-1 Kasimpasa
Despite Kasimpasa's brilliant form of late, it is a tough task to beat Trabzonspor, especially on their own pitch in front of their home crowd, which is why this encounter is likely to end all square.
In the winning form the visitors are in, and the unbeaten run of Trabzonspor, neither team look set to lose this match, with the points likely to be shared between them this weekend.
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 Trabzonspor win with a probability of 68.38%. A draw had a probability of 18.8% and a win for Kasimpasa had a probability of 12.85%.
The most likely scoreline for a Trabzonspor win was 2-0 with a probability of 11.78%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-0 (10.8%) and 2-1 (9.71%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (8.91%), while for a Kasimpasa win it was 0-1 (4.09%). The actual scoreline of 1-0 was predicted with a 10.8% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Trabzonspor would win this match.
