Two sides battling for survival in the Turkish Super Lig go head-to-head on Friday, as Bodrumspor welcome Hatayspor to the Bodrum Ilce Stadyumu in a crucial relegation clash.

Both teams arrive this clash with renewed confidence, having recently ended their winless streaks with surprise victories.

Match preview

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Bodrumspor stunned Istanbul Basaksehir with a hard-fought 1-0 away win last time out, securing only their second victory on the road this season.

Despite being under pressure for much of the game, the newly promoted side defended resolutely and capitalised on a late penalty, coolly converted by George Puscas, to seal a morale-boosting result.

It was Jose Morais's second match in charge, and the Portuguese manager remains unbeaten following a goalless draw against Goztepe in his debut fixture. He will be eager to maintain this momentum as Bodrumspor look to climb out of the drop zone.

The Mugla-based outfit's victory ended a seven-match winless run, leaving them three points from safety after 23 rounds, and will now aim to close that gap as they take on fellow strugglers Hatayspor in this high-stakes encounter.

This will be just the second-ever top-flight meeting between the two sides, with Bodrumspor having claimed a 1-0 win in the reverse fixture earlier this season.

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Hatayspor, meanwhile, face a steeper challenge in their fight for survival, as Murat Sahin's men sit seven points adrift of Bodrumspor and a daunting 10 points away from safety.

However, they too enter this fixture with renewed optimism after a shock 1-0 victory over Alanyaspor, producing a rare bright attacking display to secure a crucial three points and will be hoping to build on that performance.

Their away form, however, remains a major concern as Sahin's side have picked up just two points on the road all season, making them the league's worst travellers, and alongside Trabzonspor, they are the only team yet to win away from home.

Nonetheless, Hatayspor may take encouragement from their last visit to this ground—albeit in the lower divisions—when they stormed to a 5-0 victory.

Team News

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Bodrumspor remain without Mustafa Erdilman and Haqi Osman, the latter expected to return in early March.

Tunahan Akpinar is sidelined with a ligament issue, while Gokhan Akkan, Musah Mohammed, Uzeyir Ergun and Enis Bardhi are also unavailable through injury.

Hatayspor will be missing Lamine Diack due to injury, meaning Chandrel Massanga is likely to start in midfield.

Burak Yilmaz and Kerim Alici are also sidelined, while Guy-Marcelin Kilama is suspended for this clash.

Bodrumspor possible starting lineup:
Sousa; Celustka, Ajeti, Aytemur, Sen; Okita, Aslan Antalyali, Fredy; Seferi, Puscas

Hatayspor possible starting lineup:
Bekaj; Corecki, Calvo, Demir; Fernandes, Massanga, Saglam, Sertel; Bamgboye, Abubakar, Boutobba

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We say: Bodrumspor 1-1 Hatayspor

Both Bodrumspor and Hatayspor will look to build on their recent momentum, but the visitors' struggles away from home give the hosts an edge.

With Bodrumspor's solid defence under Morais and Hatayspor's poor away form, we are predicting a narrow win for the home side.


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

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