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EL: Fenerbahce advance, Besiktas on the verge
- Published: November 29, 2018
It was a solid night for two of the three Turkish clubs in this season’s Europa League.
Super Lig giants Fenerbahce and Besiktas put in good performances in their Thursday night Europa League fixtures against Dinamo Zagreb and Sarpsborg, respectively.
The Yellow Canaries took on Dinamo Zagreb at Sukru Saracoglu Stadium in Istanbul as they pushed for qualification from their group.
Despite their dominance through out the game, the final score was a scoreless 0-0 draw. They had over 60% of the ball possession and registered 4 shots on target.
The result sees them finish in second place in Group D, with a game in hand, and advance to the Knockout Rounds of the tournament. Their opponents, Dinamo Zagreb, finish 1st while Spartak Trnava and Anderlecht remain in 3rd and 4th place, respectively.
Fenerbahce’s Martin Skrtel attempts a header against Dinamo Zagreb.
Besiktas, on the other hand, traveled to Norway where they lined up against Sarpsborg 08 where they managed to pull of a stunning come back to defeat the Nordic club 3-2 in front of a crowd of 8,022.
The night started terribly for the Black Eagles as they were down 2-0 after just 6 minutes.
However, Senol Gunes’ men began to take more chances and the risks they took ultimately paid off.
The game took a sudden turn in the second half as Besiktas scored 2 goals in 4 minutes to draw level.
Winger Jeremain Lens pulled one back in the 62nd minute of the clash and striker Vagner Love made the comeback complete when he found the back of the net in the 66th minute.
With the clock winding down, Jeremain Lens managed to find the back of the net through an excellent lob to make the score 3-2 and stun the Norwegian side.
The vital three points means Besiktas move up to 2nd place in their group with 7 points while Genk remain in 1st place with 8 points after 5 games.
Malmoe FF and Sarpsborg are in 3rd and 4th place with 6 and 5 points, respectively.
The way the standings are, Besiktas must win their final game in the group stages in order to advance to the knockout phase of the tournament.
Their final game is against Malmoe FF in Istanbul on December 13.
