Preview: Istanbul Basaksehir vs. Galatasaray - prediction, team news, lineups

Two sides level on 24 points in the Turkish Super Lig will go head-to-head on Saturday when Istanbul Basaksehir play host to Galatasaray.

The home side have avoided defeat in their last three competitive games, while Galatasaray have the chance to claim a fourth consecutive victory in all competitions.

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Match preview

Due to having a better goal difference than their opponents, Istanbul Basaksehir head into the weekend in second place, with five points separating them from league leaders Fenerbahce.

Although they were unable to record a third consecutive victory in all competitions on Monday, they would have been pleased with a point after scoring a late equaliser against Hatayspor.

They looked to be heading towards defeat after giving up a 2-1 lead, but Serdar Gurler scored in the 91st minute to ensure that the contest finished in a 3-3 draw.

Istanbul Basaksehir will be looking to continue their impressive home form on Saturday after losing only one of their 13 competitive home games this season.

They have also won all of their last four home games in all competitions, scoring 11 goals while only conceding on two occasions.

Meanwhile, Galatasaray have picked up seven points from their last three league matches after beating local rivals Besiktas 2-1 last weekend.

Mauro Icardi opened the scoring for his side, and although Cenk Tosun equalised for Besiktas, Icardi wrapped up a brace to secure all three points.

They followed the derby victory with a midweek Turkish Cup tie against Ofspor, and goals from Haris Seferovic and Berkan Kutlu helped Galatasaray claim a 2-1 win to secure their place in the fifth round.

Galatasaray will be confident of claiming a positive result on Saturday after losing only one of their seven away league games.

They have also managed to keep five away clean sheets in the Turkish Super Lig, which is more any other side in the top flight.

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Team News

Istanbul Basasehir are unable to call upon the services of Mesut Ozil due to a back problem, while Lucas Biglia and Mahmut Tekdemir are also set to miss out.

Bertrand Traore and Gurler both came off the bench to score last weekend, and they could be rewarded with places in the starting lineup.

Stefano Okaka has scored five goals in all competitions this season, and he is expected to lead the line for Istanbul Basaksehir on Saturday.

As for the visitors, Mathias Ross is set to miss out through injury, while Yusuf Demir is also expected to be sidelined.

Okan Buruk made wholesale changes for the midweek cup tie, but the Galatasaray boss could revert to back to the lineup that started against Besiktas last weekend.

Icardi will be looking to add to the three goals that he has scored this season when he features in the forward line for the visitors.

Istanbul Basaksehir possible starting lineup:

Babacan; Sahiner, Duarte, Touba, Kaldirim; Traore, Aleksic, Ndayishimiye, Ozcan, Gurler; Okaka

Galatasaray possible starting lineup:

Muslera; Boey, Nelsson, Bardakci, Tasdemir; Torreira, Oliveira; Yilmaz, Mertens, Rashica; Icardi

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We say: Istanbul Basaksehir 1-1 Galatasaray

With both teams level on points and proving hard to beat in the Turkish Super Lig this season, we think that they could cancel each other out, resulting in the spoils being shared.

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

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