Preview: Genclerbirligi vs Amed SK - prediction, team news, lineups

Genclerbirligi will be looking to halt a three-match losing run when they welcome league leaders Amed SK to Eryaman Stadyumu in the Turkish Super Lig on Saturday.

The visitors have made an impressive start to their first season in the top flight, sitting at the summit with 13 points from six matches, while the hosts have collected seven points and occupy 13th position.

Match preview

Genclerbirligi began the season with consecutive victories over Fenerbahce and Goztepe, but their encouraging start has been followed by a significant downturn in results.

A 1-1 home draw against Erzurumspor came after those two wins, leaving them unbeaten in their opening three matches and looking like they would enjoy a solid season.

However, a run of three straight defeats followed that positive streak, with Genclerbirligi losing 5-0 at Trabzonspor, 2-1 at home to Kasimpasa and then 4-0 away to Basaksehir.

The defeats to Trabzonspor and Basaksehir were particularly damaging because they conceded four or more goals in both matches, while their own attack has produced only five goals across their opening six league games.

That poor run has also prompted a major change on the touchline, with Metin Diyadin initially submitting his resignation before the club confirmed on October 6 that they had accepted his departure after he remained determined to leave.

The change gives Genclerbirligi an opportunity to reset, but the scale of the challenge is clear when their recent defensive record is compared with Amed's attacking output.

Amed have scored 15 goals in their first six matches and have already beaten Trabzonspor, Basaksehir and Besiktas, with their latest victory coming in a 3-2 home success over the latter before the international break.

Gift Orban opened the scoring against Besiktas and has been one of the defining players of Amedspor's excellent start, while Dia Saba and Furkan Soyalp also scored in that victory.

The result over Besiktas was Amed's fourth win of the season and kept them at the top of the table, but there is one factor that could give Genclerbirligi encouragement.

The visitors have taken only one point from their two away matches so far, losing 2-0 at Kocaelispor in their first away fixture before drawing 2-2 at Kasimpasa, whereas all four of their victories have come in Diyarbakir.

The head-to-head record also favours Genclerbirligi, who have won two of the four previous competitive meetings, while the other two ended in draws.

Genclerbirligi Turkish Super Lig form:

Genclerbirligi form (all competitions):

Amed SK Turkish Super Lig form:

Team News

Genclerbirligi will be without Adama Traore, Cheikh Niasse and Kevin Rodrigues, who are all listed as unavailable because of injuries.

The home side otherwise have everyone else available, and Sekou Koita is likely to provide the main threat in attack after starting four league games and scoring once, while Tiago Gouveia and Franco Tongya should also feature in the attacking structure.

Amed have concerns of their own, with Muhammed Yildirim and Collins Sor carrying muscle injuries, while Dilhan Demir is recovering from a cruciate ligament injury.

Besnik Hasi will not be on the bench after receiving a one-match touchline ban following the red card he received after the Besiktas victory, with assistant coach Stef Wils expected to take charge from the technical area instead.

Orban should lead the line after scoring seven goals in his first six league appearances, while Saba, Samuel Ballet and Mohamed Khalil give Amedspor several options behind the striker.

Genclerbirligi possible starting lineup:

Egribayat; Pereira, Goutas, Thalisson, Dursun; Diabate; Traore, Ulgun, Tongya, Gouveia; Koita

Amed SK possible starting lineup:

Lafont; Krasniqi, Dellova, Bates, Meras; Soyalp, Raveloson; Ballet, Saba, Khalil; Orban

We say: Genclerbirligi 1-2 Amed SK

Genclerbirligi's home record and Amedspor's away results should make this much more competitive than their recent results suggest, but the visitors have considerably more attacking momentum and have already shown they can beat established Super Lig opposition, so the league leaders should have enough to leave Ankara with another victory.

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