GENCLERBIRLIGI GIFTED THREE POINTS !!!

 

 

Greetings Kankas and Kankies.

 

This was not so much a revival, as an off-day for Fenerbahce who were a shadow of the team they have been in recent weeks.

 

This match had ‘home banker’ written all over it with Fener challenging for a Champions League position and playing against the league basement team.

 

However, not for the first time, Gencler tore up the script and made Fener ‘eat humble pie’   !!

 

It was all going according to plan when Fener took the lead, but then they folded and Gencler took advantage of their profligacy.

 

Also, Gencler has appointed their 4^th Coach of the season, which is surely a world record   ??!!   He is Ozcan Bizati who has been around the Turkish leagues for a good few years and was Assistant Coach for Gencler and Ankaragucu among his many Clubs.

 

Fenerbahce             1                          GENCLERBIRLIGI            2

 

Team – Nordfeldt, Pehlivan, Akbas, Arda, Johanssen, Soner, Piris, Ayite, Yildirim, Candeias and Lima

 

Substitutes – Mugni, Yilmaz and Srdan

 

Fener started the match with a swagger and scored after 8 minutes, but it was correctly ruled offside.

 

2 minutes later Nordfeldt pulled off a great save when one-on-one with an attacker.

However, the goal finally arrived in the 34^th minute when Filip headed in at the back post from a free kick on the right.

 

Cue .......... Fener goal rush   ??!!       Wrong !!!     4 minutes later it was 1-1 after a calamity in the Fener defence.     A cross came in from the left which Altay had covered, but his defender, Aziz, stepped in ahead of him and deflected the ball into the net.     We can only wonder what Altay said to him   !!!

 

Just before the half time whistle Lima had a chance to score, but Altay was a split second ahead of him and smothered the ball.

 

Into the 2^nd half and I could sense Fener’s frustration.    They probably couldn’t get their head around the fact that Gencler was not ‘lying down’ and settling for 1 point.    The frustration turned to panic in the 62^nd minute when Gencler took the lead.

 

It was a great move down the right with inter-passing and when the cross came in from the right, Ayite was first to it and he bulleted a header inside the right post with Altay helpless.   There was some hesitation by the referee before awarding the goal to check VAR, but the goal was given.

 

Fener was in panic mode as the clock ran-down and were guilty of hurried passes going astray, but they almost equalised in time added on when a shot hit the post and was cleared.

 

So, the record book will show a win for Gencler, but I doubt if we will see such a ragged and listless performance like this from Fener again this season.

 

Gencler’s first win in 12 attempts, but they are still propping up the league.    If it really is a Gencler revival then they will have to prove it against fellow strugglers Kasimpasa next Saturday.    This match will be the acid test   !!!

 

All the best from Eski Kanka Jim