Preview: Istanbul Basaksehir vs Cherno More - prediction, team news, lineups

Istanbul Basaksehir will welcome Bulgarian outfit Cherno More to Turkey on Thursday night for the second leg of their UEFA Europa Conference League second qualifying round tie.

The hosts hold a narrow 1-0 lead from the first leg and will now look to finish the job at home for a place in the next round.

Match preview

A second-half goal from Omer Ali Sahiner gave Basaksehir a slim advantage last week in Varna, and the Turkish side will be confident heading into the return leg in front of their fans.

They managed the game well in Bulgaria, picking their moments to break and managing to limit Cherno More to just two shots on target from nine attempts.

Although that match marked their first competitive fixture of the new campaign, Cagdas Atan’s men showed maturity and patience, two qualities they will likely need again as they try to secure progress to the next round.

Basaksehir enjoyed a decent pre-season run, recording two wins and a draw, a momentum they carried into Europe, and with their domestic season yet to begin, all focus remains on this qualifier as they aim to avoid any slip-ups on home soil.

Meanwhile, Cherno More responded well to last week’s defeat by bouncing back with a 2-1 home victory over Botev Plovdiv in the Bulgarian First League.

A quickfire brace from Georgi Lazarov inside the first 18 minutes gave them a strong start, and they managed to see out the result despite conceding just before the hour.

That win keeps the Sailors unbeaten in the league and places them third with four points from two matches, providing a slight boost in confidence ahead of the trip to Istanbul.

Ilian Iliev’s side will now aim to cause an upset, knowing they must score at least once to take the tie to extra time, and while overturning the deficit in Turkey will be a tough task, Cherno More showed in flashes during the first leg that they can compete

Istanbul Basaksehir Conference League form:

Istanbul Basaksehir form (all competitions):

Cherno More Conference League form:

Cherno More form (all competitions):

Team News

Istanbul Basaksehir will likely line up the exact way they did in the first leg, with goalkeeper Muhammed Sengezer likely starting between the sticks.

Ousseynou Ba and Leo Duarte are expected to anchor the defence, while captain Sahiner, who made the difference last week, should lead the midfield.

Cherno More have no major injury concerns from the first leg, making it likely for coach Iliev to name a similar side to the one that featured last week.

New signing Celso Sidney will likely start in front once again, with Asen Chandarov offering creativity behind him.

Istanbul Basaksehir possible starting lineup:

Sengezer; Operi, Ba, Duarte, Bulut; Crespo, Ozdemir, Sahiner; Brnic, da Costa, Sari

Cherno More possible starting lineup:

Iliev; Panov, Drobarov, Atanasov, Donchev; Panayotov, Teles; Zlatev, Chandarov, W.J.; Sidney

We say: Istanbul Basaksehir 2-1 Cherno More

With both sides still in early-season rhythm, Thursday’s clash could be finely balanced, especially if the visitors settle in quickly and find the breakthrough.

However, Basaksehir’s home advantage, better quality and game management may ultimately prove decisive, earning them victory.

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