Preview: Trabzonspor vs Genclerbirligi - prediction, team news, lineups

Trabzonspor host Genclerbirligi at Papara Park on Sunday in round four of the 2026-27 Turkish Super Lig season, with the home side searching for direction after parting ways with head coach Fatih Tekke earlier this week.

The visitors, by contrast, arrive in Trabzon as one of the division's early success stories, sitting on seven points from their opening three matches under Metin Diyadin.

Match preview

Trabzonspor's week began in chaos, with Tekke's 18-month spell in charge ending by mutual agreement following a 2-1 defeat away at Amed, a result that came just days after the club's Europa League playoff elimination to Ferencvaros, who won 4-0 in the second leg after a 1-0 first-leg defeat to complete a 5-0 aggregate victory.

Tekke had actually offered his resignation after that European exit, only for the club's management to reject it and keep him on, but a 90th-minute Gift Orban winner in Diyarbakir proved the final straw, with vice-president Serkan Kilic confirming the split in an official statement this week.

Mohamed Salah had given the Black Sea Side an 11th-minute lead in that defeat, latching onto Ernest Muci's pass to finish from a tight angle, only for Amed to level through Yira Collins Sor in first-half stoppage time after Andre Onana saved a Mbaye Diagne penalty, before Orban struck the late winner.

With the club still searching for a permanent successor, and reports linking the vacancy to Senol Gunes, Arda Turan, Antonio Conte and Sergio Conceicao, former Trabzonspor coach Huseyin Cimsir has been placed in interim charge specifically for Sunday's fixture against Genclerbirligi.

The hosts sit on four points from three league matches so far this season, a tally built on a single win, one draw and one defeat, and Cimsir's immediate task will be to steady a squad and fanbase unsettled by the managerial upheaval of the past week.

Genclerbirligi, for their part, have made an outstanding start to the season under Diyadin, following an opening-day win over Fenerbahce and a victory at Goztepe with a 1-1 draw at home to Erzurumspor, leaving them on seven points from three matches.

That draw with Erzurumspor saw the Ankara side twice denied by strong defending before Adama Traore's 66th-minute equaliser cancelled out Eren Tozlu's earlier goal, a result that continued the club's unbeaten start to the campaign.

Diyadin gave his squad two days off after that match before returning to training this week at the Bestepe Ilhan Cavcav Facilities, running through conditioning, ball-retention and small-sided possession work in preparation for the trip to Trabzon.

Genclerbirligi have stated their aim of maintaining their positive start to the campaign heading into this match, and with Trabzonspor now managed on an interim basis for the first time all season, Sunday represents as good an opportunity as Diyadin's side could have hoped for to claim another notable scalp.

The visitors will also be encouraged by the 3-0 win they secured on their last visit to this ground back in May, as they completed the league double over the Trabzon side last season, only losing to them when they met in the Turkish Cup.

Trabzonspor Turkish Super Lig form:

Trabzonspor form (all competitions):

Genclerbirligi Turkish Super Lig form:

Genclerbirligi form (all competitions):

Team News

Trabzonspor have several personnel questions to resolve after a disrupted week, with Cimsir expected to make changes following the injury and fatigue issues that affected the squad during the Amed defeat, including reassessing Noah Saviolo's fitness after his early withdrawal in that match.

The hosts have several important absentees, with Ruslan Malinovskyi, Tim Jabol-Folcarelli, Bogdan Bouchouari, Okay Yokuslu and Arseniy Batagov all set to remain sidelined.

Salah has averaged one goal per game in the league so far, while Paul Onuachu provides a substantial aerial target, and the two will hope to make the difference in attack.

Fabinho made his debut for the club last time out and is expected to retain his place in midfield alongside Kabasakal.

Genclerbirligi have no fresh injury concerns following their draw with Erzurumspor, with Diyadin expected to select the same group that has produced such a strong start to the Super Lig season.

However, they will remain without midfielders Mame Niasse and Metehan Demir as well as defender Kevin Rodrigues.

Pedro Pereira, Dimitrios Goutas, Metehan Baltaci and Abdurrahim Dursun are expected to line up as the back four.

Franco Tongya is one player Trabzonspor will need to monitor closely, as the Italian has been among Genclerbirligi's most important attacking players since the start of the campaign and remains their leading scorer, while Sekou Koita offers pace and direct running from the front.

Trabzonspor possible starting lineup:

Onana; Pina, Savic, Nwaiwu, Cabral; Fabinho, Kabasakal; Salah, Muci, Sesmir; Onuachu

Genclerbirligi possible starting lineup:

Egribayat; Pereira, Goutas, Baltaci, Dursun; Diabate; Traore, Ulgun, Tongya, Aslan; Koita

We say: Trabzonspor 1-1 Genclerbirligi

Trabzonspor's home advantage and individual quality, led by Salah, give them a route back to winning ways, but the upheaval of losing a head coach mid-week and a chastening European exit make this a genuinely uncertain occasion for the hosts.

We expect Genclerbirligi's early-season confidence and defensive organisation to hold firm again, with the visitors well equipped to leave Trabzon with a point that would extend their unbeaten start to four matches.

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