Preview: Ankaragucu vs. Kayserispor - prediction, team news, lineups

Kayserispor travel to the Turkish capital to face Ankaragucu at the Eryaman Stadium on Sunday afternoon in the Super Lig.

Both sides are looking to recover after back-to-back league defeats in the last week.

Match preview

Ankaragucu restarted their campaign in fine fashion with 2-0 wins in both the cup and the league against Tuzlaspor and Antalyaspor, respectively.

However, a worrying defeat against bottom-placed Umraniyespor saw them slip instantly back into trouble.

A spirited display against Galatasaray on Wednesday was a respectable response to that loss, as they led early on but were behind by half time.

In the second half, they had 69% possession and looked the most likely team to score, but they just could not find that decisive equaliser and fell to a 2-1 defeat for the second game running.

Omer Erdogan's side now find themselves 14th, level on points with Hatayspor, who are the side in the final relegation spot entering the weekend.

For Kayserispor, they have struggled even more than their upcoming opponents since the resumption of league action since the World Cup break.

They have let in seven goals on their way to consecutive defeats against Alanyaspor and Fatih Karagumruk.

That comes as something of a surprise considering they had one of the strongest defensive records before the intermission, after conceding just 15 goals in the 14 league games that came before the league halted.

Defeat to Karagumruk on Wednesday saw them 0-2 down after just 12 minutes and 1-4 behind just after the hour in a thoroughly disappointing performance.

A loss versus Konyaspor in the final game before the break means they have now lost three in a row in the league, with their cup form the only thing of note currently.

Wins over Sivas Belediyespor and Genclerbirligi on that front did not have the desired effect in helping them find some form on the league front.

Cagdas Atan will have had ambitions of his side qualifying for Europe not too long ago, but now they are just as close to the relegation zone as they are to the European places given their poor run of form.

The Kayserispor faithful will be glad they had an excellent run of form through September and October, as they are still inside the top eight and not mixed in with the cluster of sides closely packed together in the bottom half, for whom danger of a relegation dogfight looms large.

Team News

Ankaragucu's first-choice goalkeeper Gokhan Akkan is close to returning from the injury that forced him off against Kasimpasa in early November.

That means Bahadir Gungordu's place in the side will be under threat as he has been deputising for Akkan in his absence.

Tolga Cigerci is back after serving his one-game suspension for accumulating four yellow cards in the Super Lig this season.

Mame Thiam is expected to remain out for Kayserispor as he has been missing since the return after picking up an ankle injury during the break.

An injury-time yellow card vs. Karagumruk meant bookings in back-to-back games now for Bernard Mensah, so he will miss this encounter through suspension.

Ankaragucu possible starting lineup:

Gungordu; Malcuit, Radakovic, Mujakic, Marlon; Diack, Antalyali, Zahid; Kilinc, Sowe, Chatzigiovanis

Kayserispor possible starting lineup:

Bayazit; Bulut, Kolovetsios, Carole; Sazdagi, Campanharo, Kemen, Civelek, Cardoso; Bassan, Gavranovic

We say: Ankaragucu 2-2 Kayserispor

Neither side has been particularly deficient in front of goal, but it has been the leakiness of their defences which have been their respective downfalls in the past few games.

Kayserispor may be much higher in the table, but their form is worrying and they are only going in one direction at the moment, so even a draw here will be welcome just to stop the run of defeats.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.