Istanbul Başakşehir Beat Gaziantep FK 2-1 in Süper Lig Week 8

In Week 8 of the Trendyol Süper Lig, Istanbul Başakşehir beat Gaziantep FK 2-1 at their home ground, Başakşehir Fatih Terim Stadium. The hosts led 1-0 at halftime, Gaziantep equalized in the second half, and Başakşehir scored the winner in the 81st minute.

How the match unfolded

Başakşehir took the lead in the 8th minute. Umut Bozok received a pass from Shomurodov and tried to play the ball to Olsen on the right; it deflected off Camara to Shomurodov behind the six-yard box, and the Uzbek forward put it in the net. In the 7th minute, goalkeeper Muhammed had held Camara's shot.

In the 29th minute, a Başakşehir goal was disallowed after a VAR review. Goalkeeper Tobiasz had pulled Umut Bozok's header off the line from Olsen's cross, and Brnic put the ball in the net. Referee Alpaslan Şen first awarded the goal; after VAR Halil Umut Meler's alert, Şen reviewed the incident again, ruled that Umut Bozok had handled the ball and cancelled the goal.

Gaziantep FK equalized in the 66th minute. From Kozlowski's cross from the left, Serdar Dursun, challenging Ba in the six-yard box, headed the ball into the net. Four minutes later, Serdar Dursun's one-on-one shot hit goalkeeper Muhammed in the face and went out for a corner. In the 81st minute, Umut Güneş put Başakşehir 2-1 ahead with a shot from the left of the penalty arc. In the 83rd minute, Tobiasz saved Yusuf Sarı's one-on-one effort.

Nuri Şahin: A deserved win

Başakşehir head coach Nuri Şahin said at the post-match press conference that they deserved the victory. Şahin said his team dominated the first half but has had trouble starting second halves well.

We found the goal early. We dominated the first half almost entirely. Our only shortcoming was the second goal.

Nuri Şahin

Asked about the tension with Gaziantep FK head coach Orhan Ak at the end of the match, Şahin said:

Whatever happened, it stayed there. I don't want to get into such things. What mattered to me was the match.

Nuri Şahin

Şahin said the Week 9 away match against Beşiktaş will be tough and that they will need to be very brave to win.

Gaziantep's side

Gaziantep FK assistant coach Cihan Ünal attended the press conference in place of Orhan Ak, who was shown a red card after the match. Ünal said they played well, especially in the second half.

In football, the ball decides fate. Unfortunately, our ball didn't go in.

Cihan Ünal

Ünal said the tension should not be blown out of proportion, and noted that their next match is against Erzurumspor FK.