Preview: Altay vs. Gaziantep - prediction, team news, lineups

Altay will look to give their survival hopes a boost on Sunday, when they play host to Gaziantep.

With 12 games left of the season, the hosts sit 19th in the Turkish Super Lig table, five points adrift of safety, while their visitors occupy 10th spot despite a difficult run of form.

Match preview

After initially making a strong start to the league season, Altay went on to endure a dismal run of form between October and January, going 16 top-flight matches without a win.

In that time, they earned just three points and suffered eight consecutive defeats before finally stopping the rot with a 2-0 away victory over Goztepe SK.

They were unable to build on that, though, playing out a disappointing stalemate with fellow strugglers Caykur Rizespor before facing the tough test of a trip to defending champions Besiktas last time out.

Despite a commendable effort from Serkan Ozbalta's side, they eventually left empty-handed as Domagoj Vida's goal made the only difference, taking their unenviable loss tally to 16 in 26 league outings.

As a result of their poor form in recent months, Buyuk Altay now find themselves five points adrift of safety and will know it is a particularly tall task to avoid the drop, meaning Sunday will be seen as a must-win if they are to stand a chance of climbing out of the bottom four before the end of the campaign.

They welcome a Gaziantep side who are also looking to correct a disappointing run of form, albeit without the threat of relegation.

After climbing well into the top half with an impressive run between November and early February, picking up seven wins and 23 points from a span of 12 games, Erol Bulut's side have been unable to add another three-point haul in their last three attempts.

Their run was first put to an end by a 2-0 defeat to Istanbul Basaksehir, before they suffered a concerning 3-0 thrashing against Adana Demirspor and played out a disappointing goalless draw with basement side Yeni Malatyaspor last time out.

As a result, Bulut's men have dropped back down to 10th spot, and, with 11th-placed Faith Karagumruk now level on points, they will be keen to make a return to winning ways to preserve their top-half status.

Team News

Altay should have a full squad to choose from, following Murat Akca's return from a suspension.

He should slot straight back into the heart of a back four alongside Eric Bjorkander, with Cebrail Karayel and Ozgur Ozkaya set to feature in full-back roles.

Daouda Bamba will hope to lead the line, having netted seven league goals so far this term.

Gaziantep are in the unfortunate position of coming in without Hamza Mendyl and Halil Ibrahim Pehlivan - ordinarily their first and second-choice left-backs.

Joao Figueiredo and Muhammet Demir should again partner up in attack, having registered combined tallies of 11 goals and five assists in league action this campaign.

Former Liverpool defender Steven Caulker will continue to operate in a back three, likely joined by Ertugrul Ersoy and former Chelsea man Papy Djilobodji.

Altay possible starting lineup:
Lis; Karayel, Bjorkander, Akca, Ozkaya; Thaciano; Kappel, Yildrim, Pinares, Karatas; Bamba

Gaziantep possible starting lineup:
Guvenc; Caulker, Ersoy, Djilobodji; Kitsiou, Maxim, Niyaz, Erdogan, Tosca; Demir, Figueiredo

We say: Altay 1-1 Gaziantep

Altay will certainly be fired up given their requirement for wins to survive, but they welcome a Gaziantep side who are superior on paper and may have to settle for a share of the spoils.

While the visitors are far from playing at their peak, they should, at least, have enough to avoid a defeat against an Altay outfit lacking form.

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