Ankaragucu take on Genclerbirligi in their final pre season match before the start of their Super Lig campaign gets underway on Monday 8th August against Konyaspor.
The new players were unveiled at Eryaman stadium yesterday in front of an excited crowd who had gathered to welcome them with Jese Rodriguez in particular gaining most interest. Faruk Koca spoke to the gathering media saying in his 3 years at the club this is the most excited he has been.
Koca mentioned Pedrinho, Zahid, Jese and Tasos in particular who he thinks can bring a lot to the team in terms of experience and talent. He also confirmed that Lamine Diack doesnt have a sell on clause or buy back clause in the deal with Fenerbahce. The club will also press on with signing a new centre back and midfielder in the coming days.
Tomorrow night the TSYD Cup takes place with Ankaragucu taking on rivals Genclerbirligi. The last time the team won the competition was back in 2001 which is a record Ankargucu will want to put straight especially with Gencler now in Lig 1.
Its an opportunity for the fans to see all the new signings play live for the first time due to the lack of media coverage at the pre season games in Erciyes. It will also give a clearer idea of where the team is at in terms of fitness with this match having more of a competitive edge and meaning that the previous pre season games.
Once of the biggest decisions for Mustafa Dalci is choosing who will be Number 1 goalkeeper with Nurullah, Bahadir, Dogukan, Mert and Kaan all to chose from. It looks like Mert wont see any game time this season and Kaan will find it difficult as Dalci is very reluctant to play academy players.
It will likely come down to Nurullah and Bahadir and both will have to impress in training to make that position their own.
In defence the club signed Uros Radankovic in midweek and he will likely partner Sinan Osmanoglu until another central defender is singed. This is still a very weak part of the team and could cause issues especially in the first 4-5 weeks of the season.
Marlon will take the left back position and it will be down to Firatcan who is more of an attacking player and Oguz who will play at right back. Another area of concern in the team.
In midfield Ankaragucu look to have done some good business and are 1 player away from being competitive. Diack will likely start in that defensive area of the pitch until a more experienced player is singed, with Zahid and Perdinho the 2 playmakers in front. Pedrinho looks a very exciting signing and Zahid should move up a level too with better players around him.
In the wide areas Beridze and Jese will fight it out for that left win position while Tasos and Ariyibi are available for the right hand side. On paper the team has some quality options who can provide both pace and technical ability.
Up front it will be a choice between Ali Sowe and Federico Macheda. Both have done well in their first couple of games, but the reports are that Ali Sowe looks to have the edge with his power, speed and work rate.
The game will be live on TRT tomorrow and hopefully a chance for Ankaragucu fans to celebrate a trophy before going into the season.
I'm expecting an emphatic win for Ankaragücü. Winning trophies breeds confidence and this is a chance for the team to put the frighteners up Konya.!!!! Do it Ankaragücü.!!!! By Eski Kanka.!!
ReplyDeleteI have lost count :) Is that fourteen new signings now? Is the rule still maximum of eight ‘foreign’ players on the pitch at any given time and no more than fourteen in the squad? Ankaragücü has eighteen foreign players now, isn't it?
ReplyDeleteCouple the number of foreign players with Mustafa Dalci's reluctance to play academy players and we can see the future of Turkish football(ers) is "in good hands"! ;)) ho hum
Flying Dutchman Kanka