Fenerbahçe keeps Super League title hopes alive


With only a few games left, Istanbul giant Fenerbahçe remains in hot pursuit of the top three Super League sides. The Yellow Canaries beat Osmanlıspor 2-0 at home Sunday to keep their title race on course. Fenerbahçe took the lead in the 54th minute when Slovakian defender Martin Skrtel guided a Mathieu Valbuena corner into the net. Osmanlıspor goalkeeper Zydrunas Karcemarskas caught the ball, but the referee said it crossed the goal line. The Istanbul giant doubled the margin with a beautiful goal from Spanish striker Roberto Soldado in the 60th minute. With the win, the Yellow Canaries held on to fourth place, keeping itself well in contention for the title. They now have 54 points, just five behind league leaders Medipol Başakşehir.

Meanwhile, Beşiktaş is third with 56. The other title contender, Galatasaray, was looking to recapture the lead against Gençlerbirliği in Ankara as of press time Monday. Ahead of the match, the Lions were second in the league table with 57 points.

In the other matches of the week, Konyaspor beat Sivasspor 5-0, Bursaspor lost at home against Kasımpaşa 1-0, Alanyaspor won 3-1 against Akhisarspor. Seven teams find themselves struggling to avoid relegation: Gençlerbirliği (27 points), Osmanlıspor and Konyaspor (28 points each), Alanyaspor (31 points), Bursaspor (33 points), and Antalyaspor and Akhisarspor (34 points each). Commentators have attributed rising interest in the Super League because the title race is being hotly contested among four teams. With that, the Spor Toto Super League is one of the most competitive leagues in Europe at the moment.