Preview: Konyaspor vs. Alanyaspor - prediction, team news, lineups

Konyaspor will be hosting their first Turkish Super Lig match since the break for the Qatar World Cup when they face Alanyaspor this Sunday.

The home side are fifth in the league table after a solid start to the season, while the visitors are in ninth place.

Match preview

After 14 games played in the Super Lig, Konyaspor are outside of the top three by just three points, trailing Istanbul Basaksehir.

The Green and Whites have the best defensive record in the league, letting in just nine goals up to this point, although seven of these have been shipped in their last six outings.

Indeed, since defeating Umraniyespor 1-0 at the beginning of October, Ilhan Palut's side have failed to keep a clean sheet, a real downturn in form considering that they did not concede a single goal in their first six league matches.

Not only that, but Konyaspor have won just one of their last six league matches, although four of these did finish as draws, proving themselves as a very difficult side to beat, having lost just twice in the Super Lig all season.

In their last match, the Green and Whites faced off against Bodrumspor in the Turkish Cup, a match that they just about managed to win 3-2, despite their opponents playing in the division below.

Alanyaspor have so far failed to build on a fifth-placed finish last season, largely due to very inconsistent form, having failed to win two games in a row all season across all competitions.

Francesco Farioli's side amassed just five points from their opening five matches, and they have intermittently shown signs of improvement since, but a very poor defensive record has stopped them from rising further up the table.

Sunday's away side have conceded 24 goals in 14 games so far, the second-highest amount recorded by any side not in the relegation zone, picking up just two clean sheets in the process.

In their last away match prior to the season being paused, Alanyaspor handed bottom side Umraniyespor their first league win of the season, continuing their awful form on the road, acquiring just five points in seven away trips so far.

Last time out, Farioli's side were 3-2 victors at home to Eyupspor in the Turkish Cup, with Koka missing two penalties to make things far more difficult than they should have been against a team in the division below, but they eventually managed to get the job done after extra time.

Team News

Endri Cekici is a doubt for Konyaspor due to a hamstring injury, so Bruno Paz and Soner Dikmen are the likely choices in the centre of midfield.

They should be accompanied by Amir Hadziahmetovic, who came on as a substitute last time out and scored twice, having also netted in the previous fixture, a friendly against Ankaragucu.

Striker Uche Ikpeazu is yet to score for the Green and Whites, failing to do so again against Bodrumspor, so Muhammet Demir may instead be chosen to lead the line.

For Alanyaspor, Efecan Karaca is missing through suspension, so Idrissa Doumbia could come into the starting lineup after scoring from the bench in the last match.

Leroy Fer is set to accompany Doumbia in central-midfield, while Ivan Cavaleiro and Oguz Aydin should feature further forward, providing service for Koka, who has three goals and an assist in nine league appearances this season.

Konyaspor possible starting lineup:

Sehic; Oguz, Yazgili, Calvo, Haubert; Hadziahmetovic, Bytyqi, Dikmen, Paz, Michalak; Demir

Alanyaspor possible starting lineup:

Runarsson; Pereira, Gunes, Aksoy, Balkovec; Ozdemir, Doumbia, Fer; Candeias, Aydin, Koka

We say: Konyaspor 2-1 Alanyaspor

While Konyaspor have drawn a lot of their recent matches, they are seven points clear of Alanyaspor in the table and should have enough quality to secure a win by a narrow margin against a team that really struggle defensively.

Not only that, but the visitors also have a very poor record away from home, so they will struggle travelling to one of the league's better sides.

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