Antalyaspor - Besiktas predictions and free betting tips [08/02/2024]

In the resort city of Antalya, yet another 1/8 final match is due to be played, which I have taken up for forecasting. The "Scorpions" are getting a visit, rather, a landing, from the "Black Eagles". Fans of Turkish football can probably surmise that it's Antalyaspor and Besiktas who will vie for a spot in the quarterfinals of the Turkey Cup.

Antalyaspor

Enerjit Sirgen Yalçın's team is fully motivated towards claiming the 3-4 spots in the Super League's table, a position eyed by many clubs given the tightness of the championship. Antalyaspor displays a fair bit of steady football now and then, which is why the team is bidding for Euro cups in a couple of directions.

The team under Yalçın has a fair few draws, but the key here is that losses are rare. Looking at who Antalyaspor usually gives way to indicates another reason to praise the Scorpions— they only lose to superior opponents. For instance, in the last round of the championship, Yalçın's players lost (0:2) to Fenerbahçe, although they didn't look half bad in statistics, and even better the Super League leaders at times.

In the Turkey Cup, Antalyaspor had two walk-through matches and a face-off where they had to put in some effort to overpower the opponent. They fought hard against the Istanbul club Pendi̇kspor, but the class of Enerjit Sirgen Yalçın's players was evident in the second half when Antalyaspor recovered from 0:1 to take the lead with 2:1 in their favour.

Yalçın has a decent line-up at his disposal, however there are players without whom the Scorpions would struggle. They particularly rely on Adam Buksa who rarely misses matches. There's the Israeli Sagiv Yehezkel, who was recently removed from the team after a bandana-related incident featuring the Star of David, a bit of a setback for the lad who was just starting to play his part after transferring from Hapoel Be'er Sheva.

Overall, Antalyaspor is a well-coordinated team and it'll be interesting to see if they can beat Besiktas once again, having already defeated them with a score of (3:2) on the same ground in the first round of the current Super League season.

Besiktas

After failing in the Conference League group, the club brought in Fernando Santos who had been having some trouble with the Polish national team. This hire indicates Besiktas's plans for the forthcoming season. Nonetheless, in the current season at least one concern must be addressed—qualifying for the Euro cups.

Undoubtedly, Santos must also target the Turkey Cup, which requires not only overcoming opponents of a slightly lower skill level but also devising a game plan against Galatasaray and Fenerbahçe, who lead in the championship and plan to contest the secondary competition's trophy between them.

In the Super League, Besiktas's position is shaky and they could swap places with the likes of Antalyaspor or other clubs vying for the Euro cup spots. With one of the priciest rosters in Turkey, Besiktas boasts a formidable offensive. Young forward Semih Kılıçsoy earns a lot of praise and is at the top of the club's goal-scorers list at only 18 years old. There's Cenk Tosun and a host of intriguing midfielders, including Milot Rashica who could appear in the match against Antalyaspor and the injured Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain who seems to always be dealing with injuries. Additionally, there's celebrated defender Arthur Masuaku, who's representing DR Congo in the Africa Cup of Nations and is unlikely to even make it to the Turkey Cup match.

As Besiktas is undergoing a transition with a new coach, it wouldn't be prudent to expect skilful football from the Istanbul club any time soon. Antalyaspor has a decent team capable of distinguishing itself against Santos's players, but they probably shouldn't play as the favourites in this match.

Head to Head

In the first round of the championship, Antalyaspor overcame Besiktas with a score of (3:2). The best player in that match was Israeli Sagiv Yehezkel who scored twice and set up a goal.

Match forecast: Antalyaspor - Besiktas

Sergeant Yalçin's players should manage to find faults in the opponent's defence and exploit them. Besiktas has a strong striking force and we once again expect useful contributions from the young forward Semih Kılıçsoy. All in all, our bet on total over 2,5 in this match.