Preview: Fenerbahce vs. Gaziantep - prediction, team news, lineups

Fenerbahce will be looking to clinch a seventh consecutive league victory when they play host to Gaziantep in the Super Lig on Friday.

The Yellow Canaries currently occupy second position, while the visitors - who are winless in their last four matches - enter the contest in 15th place.

Match preview

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With four games left to play in the Super Lig season, Fenerbahce sit just one point clear of Konyaspor in the battle for the second and final Champions League qualification spot.

After 28 matches, the Yellow Canaries sat in sixth place with 11 points separating them from Konyaspor, but since that point, Fenerbahce have embarked on a 10-game unbeaten league run, which includes nine victories.

Their last four matches have been won by an aggregate 14-0 scoreline with six of those goals occurring last Friday as the Yellow Canaries eased past Caykur Rizespor.

Diego Rossi opened the scoring for Ismail Kartal's side before Serdar Dursun dispatched two spot kicks in first-half stoppage time, and the forward wasted no time in completing his hat-trick as he found the net once again just six minutes after the restart.

Goals from Enner Valencia and Nazim Sangare completed the impressive display, with Fenerbahce now turning their attention to Friday's contest, where they will be hoping to prepare for their derby game against Besiktas with a victory over Gaziantep.

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The visitors are all but safe with 12 points separating them from the relegation zone with just four matches left to play, but Gaziantep will be looking for an improvement on the pitch after failing to win their last four matches.

They did pick up a dramatic point last weekend in a contest with Goztepe that featured two goals and a missed penalty in stoppage time.

A strike from Adis Jahovic in the second minute of additional time gave Goztepe the lead before Joao Figueiredo restored parity four minutes later, and Gaziantep still had the chance to win the game from the spot, but Muhammet Demir was unable to convert.

That point leaves Friday's visitors in 15th position, and although they are set to fall short of last season's ninth-placed finish, Erol Bulut will be challenging his side to end the season with a run of positive results.

The visitors have the chance to claim a league double over Fenerbahce after Gaziantep beat the Yellow Canaries 3-2 in the reverse fixture.

Team News

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Fenerbahce are expected to be without Attila Szalai for the second game in a row, with a muscle injury set to prevent the defender from featuring in Friday's contest, while Dimitrios Pelkas is also set to miss out due to a foot problem.

Despite coming off the bench to score against Caykur Rizespor, Sangare will have to settle for a place among the substitutes, with Kartal expected to name an unchanged lineup.

Dursun's hat-trick last Friday took his league tally for the season to 12 goals and the 30-year-old will have the chance to find the net once again when he leads the line against Gaziantep.

As for the visitors, they are still without the injured Torgeir Borven, while Dogan Erdogan is suspended for Friday's contest.

Meanwhile, Steven Caulker is a doubt for the match after the defender missed the 1-1 draw with Goztepe due to a muscle injury.

Gunay Guvenc was forced off in the first half against Goztepe, but the goalkeeper is likely to be fit enough to start on Friday.

Fenerbahce possible starting lineup:

Bayindir; Osayi-Samuel, Aziz, Kim, Kadioglu; Crespo, Zajc; Kahveci, Yandas, Rossi; Dursun

Gaziantep possible starting lineup:

Guvenc; Tosca, Ersoy, Djilobodji; Kitsiou, Soyalp, Vetrih, Cihan, Sagal; Demir, Maxim

We say: Fenerbahce 2-0 Gaziantep

With Gaziantep low on confidence after a four-game winless run, they would have preferred a slightly easier test on Friday than a Fenerbahce side that are in a rich vein of form, and we think that the hosts have enough quality to clinch a seventh consecutive league victory as they bid to keep hold of second place.