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Galatasaray entertain Besiktas at the NEF Stadyumu in the standout fixture of the Turkish Super Lig on Monday.
The two Istanbul-based clubs failed to extend their winning streaks to three games in league fixtures. The hosts fell to a 2-0 loss at Konyaspor while Besiktas played out a 2-2 draw at home to Istanbul Basaksehir.
After this crucial league tie, the hosts welcome Barcelona in the second leg of their Europa League round of 16 fixtures on Thursday. They will therefore face a selection dilemma here. Galatasaray and Besiktas are two of the most successful clubs in Turkey but their title charge is as good as over, with just 11 rounds of fixtures left to play.
Galatasaray vs Besiktas Head-to-Head
The two fierce rivals have crossed paths 246 times across all competitions since their first encounter in 1959, though there have been more than 100 exhibition games between them as well.
They have been pretty evenly matched in this fixture, with the hosts enjoying a narrow 89-85 lead in wins. The spoils have been shared 72 times in this fixture.
They last met at Vodafone Arena in October. Cyle Larin's brace in that game helped the then-hosts secure a 2-1 win in the reverse fixture.
Galatasaray form guide (all competitions): D-L-W-W-D
Besiktas form guide (all competitions): D-L-W-W-D
Galatasaray vs Besiktas Team News
Galatasaray
Arda Turan missed the Europa League game with a groin strain while Sofiane Feghouli and Kaan Arslan are not fully fit at the moment. The trio are not expected to be risked here.
Injured: Arda Turan
Doubtful: Sofiane Feghouli, Kaan Arslan
Suspended: None
Besiktas
Miralem Pjanic is one of the many key absentees for the visiting side. Welinton and Mert Günok also did not feature in the training sessions and are sidelined for the game.
Mehmet Topal is struggling with a lung infection and is not expected to return to action this month. Rıdvan Yılmaz, Oğuzhan Özyakup, and Atiba Hutchinson worked separately from the group and face late fitness tests.
Injured: Josef de Souza, Miralem Pjanic, Welinton, Mert Günok, Mehmet Topal
Doubtful: Georges-Kevin N'Koudou, Rıdvan Yılmaz, Atiba Hutchinson, Oguzhan Özyakup,
Suspended: None
Galatasaray vs Besiktas Predicted XI
Galatasaray Predicted XI (4-5-1): Inaki Pena (GK); Omar Elabdellaoui, Marcao, Victor Nelsson, Patrick Van Aanholt; Erick Pulgar, Berkan Kutlu; Olimpiu Morutan, Ryan Babel, Kerem Akturkoglu; Mostafa Mohamed
Besiktas Predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Ersin Destanoğlu (GK); Valentin Rosier, Serdar Saatçı, Francisco Montero, Umut Meraş; Necip Uysal, Can Bozdoğan; Rachid Ghezzal, Alex Teixeira, Cyle Larin; Michy Batshuayi
Galatasaray vs Besiktas Prediction
Galatasaray will be hoping to avenge their 2-1 loss earlier this season but they might prioritize their Europa League fixture against Barcelona on Thursday over this league fixture.
The two sides have displayed some flair throughout the season and, taking into consideration the form of both sides and the bragging rights in the Istanbul derby at stake here, a high-scoring draw seems to be the likely outcome.
Prediction: Galatasaray 2-2 Besiktas
