Preview: Altay vs. Fatih Karagumruk - prediction, team news, lineups

Fresh off the back of a morale-boosting victory over Istanbul Basaksehir, Fatih Karagumruk travel to the Bornova Aziz Kocaoglu Stadyumu to face Altay on Sunday.

The hosts, on the other hand, fell to a defeat at the hands of Gaziantep last time out and will be seeking to quickly return to winning ways.

Match preview

Newly-promoted Altay have enjoyed a sensational start in the big leagues as they find themselves in the upper echelons of the Super Lig table.

Mustafa Denizli's side, who secured promotion courtesy of a 1-0 victory over Altinordu in May's playoff final, currently sit fifth in the league table, four points behind leaders Fenerbahce.

Altay's blistering run of results took a slight halt last time out as they fell to a 4-1 defeat at the hands of Gaziantep when the sides squared off at the Gaziantep Stadyumu.

Prior to that, the Buyuk Alta were on a three-game winning streak, claiming consecutive 2-1 victories over Goztepe, Caykur Rizespor and title-chasing Besiktas.

While Altay have struggled at the defensive end of the pitch, where they have shipped 13 goals, their fine string of results has been owing to their free-scoring frontmen, who boast the fourth-best attacking record in the division with 15 goals scored.

Fatih Karagumruk, on the other hand, returned to winning ways last time out when they comfortably saw off Basaksehir 3-1 when the sides met at the Vefa Stadium.

In a one-sided affair, Francesco Farioli's men raced to a three-goal lead inside the first 37 minutes through a brace from Andrea Bertolacci and Jure Balkovec's first strike of the season, before Danijel Aleksic grabbed a consolation goal with six minutes remaining in the game.

Prior to that, Fatih Karagumruk saw their two-game winning streak come to an end courtesy of a bore draw against Antalyaspor on September 21 before suffering a humbling 4-0 loss at the hands of Sivasspor four days later.

The Kara Kirmizi, who secured an eighth-placed finish last term, have started the new season on a good note as they find themselves seventh on the log, two points adrift of the Conference League qualification places.

This has been owing to their solid performance on home turf as they are unbeaten in each of their four outings so far and currently boast the league's second-best home record with 10 points and 10 goals scored.

While Farioli will hope the win last time out can serve as a catalyst to kick on, next up is an opposing side who they have failed to beat in three of the most recent four meetings between the sides, picking up one draw and losing twice.

Team News

Altay will have to cope without the services of Chilean midfielder Martin Rodriguez, who picked up a muscle injury against Gotzepe on September 17.

Turkish youngster Nurettin Kucukdeniz is also out of contention after sustaining a severe injury, while fellow countryman Eren Erdogan misses out through an ankle problem that has kept him out of action for four straight games.

On the back of an underwhelming display against Gaziantep last time out, Denizli could tinker with his starting lineup this weekend.

Al Ahli loanee Ahmed Yasser Rayan was handed his first start of the season in the aforementioned game, but after failing to impress, the 23-year-old forward could return to the bench with Erhan Celenk coming in for his fifth appearance of the season.

Meanwhile, Fatih Karagumruk will take to the pitch without the defensive duo of Derrick Luckassen and Rayyan Baniya, who are currently recuperating from muscle and knee injuries respectively.

Thirty-two-year-old defender Alparslan Erdem also misses out through a knee problem, while French forward Yannis Salibur has been sidelined since picking up an injury in the league curtain-raiser against Gaziantep.

Having missed the last three games through injury, Vegar Eggen Hedenstad is set for another week on the sidelines as the 30-year-old is currently nursing a groin problem.

Bertolacci has been pivotal in the Kara Kirmizi's solid start to the season and the former AC Milan midfielder will definitely be one to look out for in this one.

Altay possible starting lineup:
Lis; Karayel, Bjorkander, Akca, Naderi; Kappel, Thiam, Yildirim, Celenk; Thaciano, Damba

Fatih Karagumruk possible starting lineup:
Viviano; Erkin, Zukanovic, Bekaroglu, Balkovec; Ugur, Koyunlu, Bertolacci, Durmaz, Musa; Pesic

We say: Altay 1-1 Fatih Karagumruk

Newly-promoted Altay have been one of the surprise packages of the new season as they find themselves in early contention for a European place.

They take on an equally solid Fatih Karagumruk side, who are just one point behind in the standings and we predict the spoils will be shared between the two evenly-matched sides.