Gaziantep FK v Galatasaray Match Result
According to the bookmakers, there’s a 75% likelihood that Galatasaray will win this clash. The Turkish champions had a brilliant win rate last season when landing thirty victories. They achieved fifteen wins from their eighteen games on the road, with two draws and just one defeat suffered. They scored forty-five times away from home and conceded just sixteen times.
Some customers won’t want to back Gala at such a short price. After all, there’s a modest return and this being the first game of the campaign means that an unpredictable outcome is far more likely. However, the fact that the dangerous Victor Osimhen has signed a permanent contract in Istanbul strengthens the argument that an away win is on the cards.
You could alternatively consider some other pro-Gala bets such as the champions to win to nil or to land a victory along with both teams scoring. Some will expect Okan Buruk’s side to be fast out of the traps and there’s a chance to wager the champs to lead at half-time and full-time, with some bigger odds available about this outcome.
Gaziantep FK finished twelfth in the Turkish Super Lig standings last season. They won twelve games in total and ten of these victories were claimed at home. Indeed, the Falcons only lost four times in front of their own fans. İsmet Taşdemir takes charge of the team and will be confident that they can give a good account of themselves.
There are some good Asian Handicap options if you feel as though the home side can run a tight ship and this was certainly the case in the fixture last season. On that occasion, the visitors could only score once to land the points, with the home side giving a good account of themselves.
Goals Under/Over
Over 2.5 Goals is trading at a really short price and that’s on account of the fact that Galatasaray scored so many goals last time out. However, we’ll come back to that 1-0 victory for Gala in this fixture last term. An early goal from Ahmed Kutucu suggested that there would be plenty of goals, although that was where the scoring ended.
The champions did end up with seven shots on target in the game, although they were unable to trouble Burak Bozan too much of the time. The home side defended well for the most part and offered a lively threat of their own, with Gaziantep FK having scored twenty-four goals in eighteen home clashes last term.
We do think that Under 2.5 Goals is the value here. We know that the home side would regard a draw as a huge positive. They are likely to set up to contain Gala and contain Victor Osimhen. Alternatively, you could go Under 3.5 Goals if you want some more insurance with your bet.
BTTS
The bookies think it’s marginally more likely that we’ll see BTTS Yes than BTTS No on Friday. There seems to be a certainty that Galatasaray will find the net throughout the ninety minutes and it would be a surprise if the champions didn’t register at least one goal. However, it might come down to whether the home side can score.
In the previous fixture last season, Gaziantep FK produced lots of scoring chances although they only managed a sum total of twenty-four goals in the space of eighteen games. None of their players were particularly prolific during the campaign. Therefore, it could be worth considering a bet on the visitors along with BTTS No.
My hunch is that we will see both teams scoring. The home team signed off for the season with two consecutive 2-2 draws, with these coming against Kasimpasa and Adana Demirspor. These high-scoring encounters suggest that an attacking approach could be taken and this is really a bonus hit for the home side.
First Goalscorer
Victor Osimhen is the pin-up star of the Galatasaray team and he’s hot favourite to score the opening goal. The Nigerian scored twenty-six times in the Turkish Super Lig last term, with the champions having a big attacking threat this term. Alvaro Morata is currently listed although we’re likely to see the Spaniard playing his first-team football elsewhere this term.
Baris Alper Yilmaz had a strong season of his own for Gala, scoring a sum total of thirteen goals last term. The forward managed a goal against Sivasspor and that was followed by a another strike against Kayserispor towards the end of the campaign.
This player is also something of a yellow card magnet, having racked up twelve bookings throughout the campaign. For the home side, the best chances of scoring fall to Deian Sorescu, Alexandru Maxim and Christopher Lungoyi who are all similarly priced to bag the opening goal.