GENCLERBIRLIGI SQUEEZE INTO THE 4th ROUND OF THE TURKISH CUP !!

 

 

Greetings Kankas and Kankies.

 

Gencler can consider themselves fortunate to escape unscathed from a potential Cup Shock today when they were only minutes away from being eliminated in time added on in the 2^nd half   !!

 

With 5 matches in the 3^rd Round of The Turkish Cup kicking off around the same time this afternoon, thr Gencler match was not selected by the TV Channel.    Therefore, I only have sketchy details   !

 

Unsurprisingly, Gencler started with most of their ‘2^nd String’ players against an amateur team from The Antalya Regional League.

 

GENGLERBIRLIGI       3                  Burdur MAKU Spor   3     (After 90 minutes)

  

GENCLERBIRLIGI       4                   Burdur MAKU Spor     3 (After extra time)

 

 

Team – Ensar, Atalay, Erdal, Melih Bostan, Ozgur Cek, Ugur, Chukwuma, Wu, Yigit, Oltan and Eralp

 

Substitutes – Firat

 

It was obviously all going to plan in the 1^st half when Gencler went in at half time 2-0 up.

 

Melih Bostan opened the scoring after only 4 minutes and Ozgur Cek added the 2^nd 20 minutes later.

 

However, Burdur was obviously not just in Ankara to make up the numbers when they pulled a goal back 4 minutes into the 2^nd half through Demirok.

 

I can just imagine the panic stations on the touch line with the Gencler Coaching staff going mental when Mercan scored the equaliser for Burdur with 15 minutes to go   !!!

 

More drama was to follow when  Gencler's Yigit Demir scored an own goal 3 minutes into time added on at the end.

 

Even more drama when Gencler’s Oltan Karakullukcu snatched an equaliser 5 minutes later just before the full time whistle   !!

 

Gencler finally broke Burdur down when Oltan scored again in the 2^nd period of Extra Time.

 

Burdur can no doubt be proud of their performance today in almost taking the scalp of a professional team.     Well done to them    !!

 

Gencler go into the hat for the draw for the 4^th Round rather fortuitously    !!!

 

All the best from Eski Kanka Jim

ANKARAGUCU FINALLY AROUSE FROM SLUMBER ...........IN THE 2nd HALF !!

 

 

Greetings Kankas and Kankies.

 

Ankaragucu was back to their frustrating worst last night in the 1^st half with Bahadir having more touches of the ball than any other player (from back-passes  !!!), playing from side-to-side in their own half and hoofing high balls up to Ali which were swallowed up by the Samsun defence.

 

It surely wasn’t out of fear of the opposition who haven’t won a match in 10 outings this season   ??!!

 

Ankaragucu had only one shot on target in the 1^st half when Rodrigues let rip with a goal bound shot which was well saved.

 

Rodrigues had two other chances in the 1^st half, one of which was blasted over the bar when well placed, and the other was into the side-netting.

 

ANKARAGUCU              2                         Samsunspor             0

 

Team – Bahadir, Bilazer, Radakovic, Mujakic, Hanousek, Tolga, Bekiroglu, Tasos, Pedrinho, Rodrigues and Ali.

 

Substitutes – Morutan, Bajic, Cem, Ali Kaan and Dokanovic

 

It was a similar story in the 2^nd half when I was resigned to a 0-0 score line ...........well, until the 70^th minute when the match suddenly burst into life   !!

 

Rodrigues made an astute pass from near the half way line to Bekiroglu who had surged forward beating the offside trap.     He coolly rounded the goalkeeper and stroked the ball into the gaping goal to much relief all round.

 

Ankaragucu was fired up after this goal and 4 minutes later Ali almost made it two, but his goal bound shot from just outside the box was well saved.

 

However, he wasn’t to be denied when he scored one minute later after the goalkeeper had parried a headed effort which he was first to react to and shoot into the net.     The Linesman’s flag was up for offside, which I thought was a hairline decision, so I wasn’t surprised when the referee was directed to VAR.      Goal given was the correct decision    !!!

 

Samsun made a late surge looking for a consolation goal, but their two shots on target didn’t give Bahadir any cause for concern.

 

Ankaragucu move into mid-table on the back of this win, but are still only 4 points above the relegation zone ..........and 6 points below the European places.     So, still all to play for with the season not even at the halfway stage yet   !

 

The next League match is on Sunday 5 November and should be an even more demanding encounter than last night’s match when Ankaragucu travel to play Istanbul Basaksehir.

 

Notwithstanding that Basaksehir is probably not the force they were over the past few seasons, they will still be a difficult nut to crack.    They currently sit in the relegation zone, but I’m sure that Emre Hoca will not underestimate them   !!

 

However, before that match, Ankaragucu will be at home on Wednesday against Malatya Arguvan of the 3^rd Division in the 3^rd Round of The Turkish Cup.

 

As always, watch this space for the outcome of both matches.

 

All the best from Eski Kanka Jim

GENCLERBIRLIGI NEVER FAIL TO AMAZE !!!

 

 

Greetings Kankas and Kankies.

 

With Gencler seemingly dead-and-buried at  2-0 down with only 15 minutes of the match remaining, they staged a remarkable recovery to ‘steal’ a point having been on the receiving end for most of the match.

 

Kocaeli will have learned a salutary lesson from this match when the players and the large home support had assumed that the match was done and dusted  !

 

It certainly keeps Gencler’s revival firmly on track having avoided a defeat since they lost to Bandirma last month.    They now sit in 4^th position in the league and only 2 points below 2^nd placed Goztepe and Kocaeli.

 

Back to last night, and apart from the Kocaeli goal to enliven proceedings, it was a scrappy 1^st half.

 

Kocaeli            2                  GENCLERBIRLIGI                 2

 

Team – Orkun, M. Cagiran, Babacan, Nzaba, Yasin, Rodrigues, S. Yatabare, Erturk, Enes, M. Yatabare and Kayode

 

Substitutes – Kemaloglu, R. B. Cagiran, Cek, Karakullukcu and Akabueze

 

The goal arrived on the half hour mark from a corner on the left which was headed clear to the unmarked Candeias on the right just inside the box.      He first timed his shot inside the left post for what was just reward on the balance of play.

 

The standard of play in the 2^nd half wasn’t much of an improvement until 15 minutes to go when Ankaragucu ‘old boy’ Berizde received a pass on the left from the halfway line.    He cut inside the box leaving a defender in his wake and sent a curling shot inside the right post.

 

That was it then    !       Game over  !!     Kocaeli appeared to have the match sewn-up, having dominated for the most part and restricting Gencler to only one shot on target.

 

Then, boom ......boom   !!!

 

2 goals in the last 5 minutes silenced the home support.

 

Firstly, a cross from the right to the back post was met by Kayode sending a looping header over the goalkeeper, positioned at the back post, and inside the top of the near post.

 

Only 1 minute later and the equaliser.   From a corner on the right R. B. Cagiran was first to the ball to send a bullet of a header in.

 

An amazing end to the match.     The looks on the faces of the Kocaeli players at the final whistle spoke volumes   !!!    Shell shocked springs to mind   !!

 

Next up for Gencler is a home match against mid-table Bolu next Saturday 4 November.

 

As always, watch this space for the outcome.

 

All the best from Eski Kanka Jim

GENCLERBIRLIGI REGAIN EARLY SEASON MOMENTUM !!

 

 

Greetings Kankas and Kankies.

 

Gencler gained a valuable 3 points last night against a poor Altay side who are propping up the league, and on their performance last night, it could be a lengthy period in this position.

 

Gencler move up into the top 5 again and look quite capable of challenging for promotion this season.

 

GENCLERBIRLIGI             3                         Altay             0

 

Team – Orkun, Erturk, Babacan, M. Cagiran, Yasin, Enes, Kemaloglu, Amilton, R.B. Cagiran, Kayode and M. Yatabare

 

Substitutes – Rodrigues, Ugur, S. Yatabare, Cek and Akabueze

 

Gencler took control of the match from the outset and made the breakthrough in the 10^th minute.

 

The move began on the half way line and the ball was passed between M. Yatabare and Enes to the left.     The cross was made into the centre where R. B. Cagiran ghosted in between two defenders to fire in the opening goal.

 

Gencler had 2 more opportunities to add a 2^nd goal before the half time whistle.     Firstly, Amilton saw his header hit the post, and secondly, an impressive sweeping inter-passing move saw M. Yatabare’s shot go unluckily inches wide on the wrong side of the post.

 

The 2^nd half was one big yawn and the match had 1-0 written all over it until suddenly it exploded into life in the final 15 minutes   !

 

M. Yatabare and Kayote went close with goal bound efforts, until with only 5 minutes to go, the 2^nd goal arrived.

 

The move started near the half way line and the ball was carried down the right wing, crossed into the box where S. Yatabare was ideally positioned to bullet in a header to put the match beyond Altay.

 

It was all one-way traffic at this point with Akabueze and Enes almost finding the 3^rd goal, but it did arrive deep into time added on.

 

M. Yatabare received a pass on the 18 yard line and struck a fierce shot with the goalkeeper having no chance.

 

Next up for Gencler is the ‘acid test’ when they travel to 2^nd top of the league Kocaeli next Saturday who are only 2 points above Gencler.     So, this will surely test their mettle   !!

 

As always, watch this space for the outcome.

 

All the best from Eski Kanka Jim

ANKARAGUCU – BAD OLD HABITS RE-SURFACE !!!

 

 

Greetings Kankas and Kankies.

 

Ankaragucu came out of the tunnel last night in their all red strip (bordering on PINK), which as we know, is not popular with their large fan base.    As I have probably mentioned before, that the first time I saw Ankaragucu wear this strip was quite a few years ago in Buca when I mistook Ankaragucu for Buca (they wear blue and yellow) for the first 5 minutes or so of the match   !!

 

Anyway, back to last night’s match and our Webmaster, Nady, nailed it with an apt quote .......ie, GARBAGE   !!!       Nady is well known for not mincing his words   !!

 

Ankaragucu’s bad old habits re-surfaced throughout most of the match, ie, ponderous going forward and passing from left to right, especially in their own half, pumping high balls into the box in hope rather than to a  team mate, giving the ball away cheaply, hoofing the ball out of defence in panic mode ......... to name just a few   !!

 

Also, Ankaragucu can dispel hopes of qualifying for European Football next season based on this performance.   The priority would seem to be avoiding relegation   !!!       Coach Emre has much work ahead with this squad of players   !

 

Istanbulspor             2                      ANKARAGUCU               1

 

Team  -  Bahadir, Hanousek, Cetin, Radakovic, Bilazer, Bekiroglu, Tolga, Rodrigues, Morutan, Renaldo and Bajic

 

Substitutes – Ali Sowe, Dokanovic, Atakan, Pedrinho and Macheda

 

On the plus side, Ankaragucu started the match on the front foot .........well at least for the first 10 minutes, when they had Isanbulspor pegged-back in their own half.        Then, against the run of play, Istanbulspor hit Ankaragucu with a sucker punch.

 

Istanbulspor made a fast break out of defence down the left wing, an astute pass was made to an attacker who took the ball to the goal line and made the classic cut-back to the unmarked Traore who swept the ball in for a well constructed goal.

 

Obviously buoyed by their goal, Istanbulspor came more into the match and started to look threatening, with especially Alassave causing havoc down the right wing with his speed and telling passes into the danger area.

 

Then, in the 22^nd minute Ankaragucu was thrown a lifeline by the referee when he deemed that Renaldo was brought down in the box as he was about to cross the ball into the centre.   I have to say that it was a ‘soft’ penalty in my opinion, and probably awarded due to the referee having turned down a more obvious claim for a penalty earlier.     Am I being cynical   ??!!

 

Anyway, Tolga took responsibility and sent the ball inside the left post with the ball just out of reach of the goalkeeper’s outstretched hand.

 

All square and still all to play for in the 2^nd half.

 

Istanbulspor started the 2^nd half looking the likelier team to snatch the lead, and it was no surprise when they eventually did.

 

In the 59^th minute I had just written the following in my notes ............the Ankaragucu defence is living dangerously and giving the ball away needlessly at times.......

 

Then, only one minute later a complete shambles in the Ankaragucu defence gifted the winning goal to Istanbulspor.

 

A shot was made and hoofed away by a defender, but only to an Istanbulspor attacker just outside the box.     His shot on goal was only parried by Bahadir but straight to Gultekin who reacted quickest to score with the goal at his mercy   !!

 

With 10 minutes to go, it was almost 3 when Bahadir cleared the ball from his hand straight at an Istanbulspor player but a saving tackle came in to spare his blushes   !

 

Ankaragucu continued to pump aimless balls into the box as they searched frantically for another equaliser, but the Istanbulspor defence soaked them up with ease.

 

Back to the drawing board and a chance to make amends next Sunday when Ankaragucu will be at home against bottom of the league Samsun.     Only 3 points will suffice   !!!

 

All the best from Eski Kanka Jim

Ankaragücü 3-0 Kayserispor - Match Report

 

Emre Belozoglu got off to the perfect start with an impressive 3-0 win against Kayserispor in front of another big crowd at Eryaman Stadium.

Team - Bahadir, Hayrullah, Uros, Mujakic, Hanousek, Tolga, Efkan, Morutan, Rodrigues, Cephas, Bajic

Subs - Rafal, Alper, Atakan, Cem, Tasos, Pedrinho, Djokanovic, Ali Kaan, Macheda, Mert

Emre decided to go with an attacking line up with Efkan coming into midfield replacing the more defensive minded Djokanovic. 

The first chance of the game came for Kayserispor as Kemen crossed for Thiam but his header went just wide. 

Six minutes later Rodrigues cut inside and shot from outside the box but his shot went over the crossbar when he had Morutan in space.

Rodrigues had another chance later on in the half as this time he cut in from the left but his shot was weak and straight at Bilal.

Into the second half and Ankaragücü really stepped up their game. Morutan produced a moment of brilliance just after the restart as he beat his man and crossed for Rodrigues who headed past Bilal to make it 1-0.

Five minutes later Rodrigues passed the ball into the path of Bajic who cut inside his man and beautifully curled the ball past Bilal to make it 2-0 Ankaragücü. The Ankaragücü crowd showed their appreciation by creating an excellent atmosphere.

Renaldo Cephas then cut inside his man and shot from outside the box but Bilal saved down low to his left  hand side. A few minutes later Cephas showed great speed to go past his man and then shoot but Bilal made another save. 

One of the few chances for Kayserispor came in the 80th minute as Carole saw his shot from distance come back off the bar. It looked like Bahadir got his fingertips to it.

The day went that well for Emre that there was still time for a Federico Macheda goal. Tolga played him in on goal and Macheda finished well past Bilal to make it 3-0.

A great start for Emre and a sign of things to come. Next up is an away match at Istanbulspor in 2 weeks time. 

GENCLERBIRLIGI – RECOVERY IN PROGRESS ??!!

 

Greetings Kankas and Kankies.

 

After picking-up just 1 point in their last 3 outings, Gencler returned to winning ways to move out of mid-table and back into the top five.

 

Apologies again for being unable to watch the match due to a clash with the Ankaragucu v Kayseri match with the same KO time.   However, on the upside, there will be no clash when league matches return in 2 weeks time after the International Break, so a more in-depth report is assured.

 

It seemed that it was a fairly even match with possession almost shared, although Gencler had 8 shots on target as opposed to Sanliurfa who had 4.

 

Sanliurfa             1                    GENCLERBIRLIGI                2

 

Team – Orkun, M. Cagiran, Yasin, Babacan, Erturk, Amilton, Rodrigues, Enes, R.B. Cagiran, M. Yatabare and Kayode

 

Substitutes – Kemaloglu. S. Yatabare, Karakullukcu, Ugur and Akabueze

 

R. B. Cagiran opened the scoring on the 24^th minute and the equaliser arrived 6 minutes later through Capar.      Karakullukcu found the winner in the 2^nd half.

 

Next up for Gencler is a home match against Altay on 23 October.     Altay is stuck in the relegation zone but only 9 points below Gencler.     

 

As I have said many times, there are no ‘easy’ matches in the Championship League, a fact which will surely be borne in mind by the Gencler Coach and players   !!

 

As always, watch this space for the outcome.

 

All the best from Eski Kanka Jim

GENCLERBIRLIGI AVOID A 3rd CONSECUTIVE DEFEAT !

 

 

Greetings Kankas and Kankies.

 

I was unable to watch the Gencler match last night due to a conflict of interest, i.e., the Ankaragucu match had the same KO time   !!

 

Therefore, this report will be extremely sparse.

 

Gencler supporters are no doubt disappointed with the team these past few weeks after such a promising start to the season.

 

One point from 9 in the last 3 weeks is not what was envisaged   !    Nevertheless, after 7 weeks into the season, Gencler sit in mid-table with still all to play for.

 

Eyupspor and Bandirmaspor are the only undefeated teams at this stage and they will obviously be the ones to target as the season progresses.

 

GENCLERBIRLIGI             1                    Manisa               1

 

Team – Cetin, Ugur, Babacan, Yasin, Cek, Erturk, Enes, Rodrigues, Amilton, Kayode and M. Yatabare

 

Substitutes – Cagiran, Kemaloglu, S. Yatabare and Karakullukcu

 

M. Yatabare gave Gencler the perfect start when he opened the scoring after 15 minutes, but Manisa equalised 7 minutes later through Gurbulak.

 

Manisa had 63% possession in the match, but only 3 shots on target as opposed to Gencler who only had 2.

 

Next up for Gencler is a visit to mid-table Sanliurfa (2 points below Gencler) next Saturday.

 

As always, watch this space for the outcome.

 

All the best from Eski Kanka Jim

ANKARAGUCU – OUTPLAYED. BUT NOT OUTFOUGHT !!

 

 

Greeting Kankas and Kankies.

 

There can be no complaints with all 3 points staying in Istanbul last night after, as expected, there was an all-out attacking performance by Galatasaray which had Ankaragucu on the backfoot for most of the match.

 

Galatasaray could certainly have inflicted more damage on Ankaragucu had it not been for a memorable goalkeeping display by Bahadir, who ........ as Maniac Kanka Harun said ...... had the best match of his career   !

 

Galatasaray’s superior fitness level was evident for all to see and they gave Ankaragucu no time on the ball.    Ankaragucu was guilty of giving the ball away too easily when under pressure and their passing out of defence was poor.

 

The statistics of the match speak volumes.      Galatasaray had 70% possession, 36 shots on goal 6 of which were on target.       Ankaragucu had 13 shots with only 1 on target   !!

 

Man of the Match was undoubtedly Bahadir, but at the opposite end of the scale, Bajic was invisible for most of the match with only Rodrigues and Renaldo showing any attacking prowess.     The sooner Ali Sowe returns from injury the better   !!!

 

Galatasaray          2                     ANKARAGUCU               1

 

Team – Bahadir, Hanousek, Mujakic, Radakovic, Bilazer, Ali Kaan. Dokanovic, Renaldo, Rodrigues, Morutan and Bajic

 

Substitutes – Mert, Atakan, Alper, Tasos, Cetin and Bekiroglu

 

The 1^st half was all one-way traffic towards Bahadir apart from one chance for Ankaragucu which fell to Morutan when he almost scored from a shot which was heading to the top left before it was saved.   

 

It was due to Bahadir’s FIVE fantastic saves that Ankaragucu went in at the interval at 0-0.

 

2 minutes into the 2^nd half and  Ankaragucu silenced the crowd when they opened the scoring against the run of play.

 

A fast break out of defence and a great pass was sent to Renaldo who was just inside his own half of the field near the halfway line.    He collected the ball and set off, outpacing the chasing defenders, looked up and sent his shot from the left inside the right post for a great individual effort.

 

However, the goal didn’t disguise the fact that Galatasaray continued to lay siege to the Ankaragucu goal area.

 

10 minutes later and the inevitable equaliser arrived from another piece of individual skill by Zaha who had been causing problems throughout the match for the Ankaragucu defence.    From a throw-in on the left he surged into the box after avoiding a weak tackle and sent in a screamer of a shot which would have beaten any goalkeeper in the world.

 

15 minutes later and Galatasaray was in front from a scrappy goal.    A shot, or it could have been a cross, was sent in from the right which eluded everyone.   It was about to trickle over the line when the in-rushing Bilazer attempted to clear.    The referee played on, but was called to VAR to check the recovery action.    He then returned and awarded a goal.    I have to agree with his decision unfortunately because it was clear from the replay that the ball had crossed the line before Bilazer’s attempted clearance   !

 

Bahadir continued his heroics right up to the final whistle with some excellent saves to keep the scoreline respectable.

 

Ankaragucu is now in danger of being sucked back into the relegation zone and at present lie only 2 points above it.   Therefore, next Saturday’s match against mid-table Kayseri takes on added significance.

 

It is to be hoped that Ali Sowe will be fit to return to lead the line and take advantage of the chances which will hopefully be created by Rodrigues and Renaldo.   It is quite obvious to me that Bajic is not up to the task   !!

 

All the best from Eski Kanka Jim