Fenerbahçe suffers turkish league defeat ahead of olympique lyonnais champions league clash
Just three days before their crucial UEFA Champions League playoff first leg against Olympique Lyonnais, Fenerbahçe suffered an unexpected 1-2 defeat on the road against Gençlerbirligi in their opening Turkish Championship fixture.
This result undoubtedly brings a sense of relief to Olympique Lyonnais supporters as their team prepares for the away leg of the Champions League playoff in Istanbul this Tuesday at 9 PM, where they will face Paulo Fonseca’s Fenerbahçe side. Despite a heavily rotated starting eleven, featuring six changes from the squad that played Sturm Graz last Tuesday, the Turkish club fell to Gençlerbirligi with a 1-2 scoreline in their Süper Lig opener this Saturday evening.
At the Ankara-based team’s home ground, Fenerbahçe coach Ismail Kartal opted to rest several key regular starters. Prominent players such as N’Golo Kanté, Mason Greenwood, Nélson Semedo, and Kerem Aktürkoglu began the match on the substitutes’ bench, only entering the fray for the final thirty minutes. English left-back Archie Brown was notably given a full rest for the fixture.
Despite their significant dominance in possession (71%) and a substantial lead in shots (27 attempts to 10), the future opponents of Olympique Lyonnais initially took the lead through Brazilian midfielder Anderson Talisca in the 13th minute (1-0). However, Gençlerbirligi mounted a comeback, turning the game around with goals from Franco Tongya in the 37th minute (1-1) and Ogulcan Ülgün in the 56th minute (2-1). Fenerbahçe’s third-choice goalkeeper, Tarik Cetin, who was playing due to injuries to Mert Günok and a suspension for Ederson, struggled, conceding two goals from just three shots on target faced by the opposition.