Preview: Istanbul Basaksehir vs Kasimpasa - prediction, team news, lineups

Istanbul Basaksehir host Kasimpasa at Basaksehir Fatih Terim Stadyumu on Sunday in the third round of the Turkish Super Lig season, with the hosts looking to build on their positive start to the campaign.

Nuri Sahin's side began the campaign with a home victory over Kocaelispor before losing to Trabzonspor last weekend, while the visitors remain unbeaten after drawing with Trabzonspor and beating Corum.

Match preview

Basaksehir opened their campaign in impressive fashion, beating Kocaelispor 2-0 at home, but they could not build on that, suffering a narrow 2-1 defeat at Trabzonspor on matchday two.

The defeat in Trabzon was more frustrating because the Grey Owls competed well for long periods against a side that had just strengthened considerably in attack, and they were twice punished by Mohamed Salah, although Shomurodov's 19th-minute equaliser ensured that the visitors remained in the contest before Salah struck again shortly after half-time.

However, Sahin will be frustrated that his side have recorded just one win in their four games across all competitions, failing to beat Inter Turku in the Conference League qualifiers (1D, 1L), while recording one win and one defeat in the league.

The Grey Owls will be optimistic about bouncing back on Sunday given their ongoing 14-game unbeaten record against Kasimpasa across all competitions, which includes 12 league games featuring 10 wins and two draws.

Home advantage has also favoured Basaksehir in this fixture, with the hosts unbeaten in their last 12 meetings at home, recording eight wins and four draws.

Kasimpasa, meanwhile, have made an unbeaten start but have not exactly overwhelmed their opponents, and this will be their biggest test yet given the venue and their record against this opponent.

Emre Belozoglu's side drew 1-1 with Trabzonspor in their opener before claiming a 1-0 victory away to Corum last weekend, with Adrian Benedyczak scoring the winner after only six minutes, leaving the team to defend their advantage for the remainder of the contest.

The victory was particularly impressive from a defensive standpoint because Kasimpasa were forced to spend long periods without the ball, with Corum enjoying 75% possession and attempting 16 shots, but it was the Apaches who scored and won with their only shot on target.

That defensive resilience could prove valuable again in Istanbul, but Belozoglu will know his side need to offer more with the ball even if they see less possession, as has happened in their opening two games.

Basaksehir had just 40% of the ball in the draw with Trabzonspor, but they were able to create three big chances, registering four shots on target from nine attempts at goal.

Istanbul Basaksehir Turkish Super Lig form:

Istanbul Basaksehir form (all competitions):

Kasimpasa Turkish Super Lig form:

Kasimpasa form (all competitions):

Team News

Basaksehir are expected to retain much of the side that started against Trabzonspor, with Muhammed Sengezer continuing in goal and Emin Bayram and Jerome Opoku likely to remain at the centre of the defence.

Sahin has plenty of attacking options should he want to make changes, with Ivan Brnic and Davie Selke both coming off the bench against Trabzonspor, while Umut Bozok and Onur Ergun are also options should the manager decide to alter his approach.

Kasimpasa are expected to retain the 4-2-3-1 structure used in their opening two matches, with Benedyczak leading the line after scoring against both Trabzonspor and Corum, while Guven Yalcin, Fousseni Diabate and Marcus Rafferty are among the attacking options around him.

Kamil Ahmet Corekci is unavailable because of an Achilles problem, while Belozoglu otherwise has a relatively settled squad to choose from.

Istanbul Basaksehir possible starting lineup:

Sengezer; Sahiner, Bayram, Opoku, Operi; Kemen, Kaluzinski; Olsen, Shomurodov, Fayzullaev; Yildirim

Kasimpasa possible starting lineup:

Gianniotis; Winck, Arous, Ilie, Jessen; Demirbay, Baldursson; Yalcin, Diabate, Rafferty; Benedyczak

We say: Istanbul Basaksehir 2-0 Kasimpasa

Basaksehir's stronger attacking options, home advantage and dominant recent record in this fixture make them favourites to claim their second home victory of the season.

While we expect the visitors to remain compact and make life difficult for the hosts for long periods, the hosts should eventually find a way through.

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