Galatasaray run riot against Fenerbahce in the Intercontinental Derby

ISTANBUL - Mauro Icardi of Galatasaray AS celebrates his goal during the Turkish Super Lig match between Fenerbahce AS and Galatasaray

Galatasaray run riot against Fenerbahce in the Intercontinental Derby

Faruq Ibrahim 19:57 - 08.01.2023

Icardi, Mata, Batshuayi, and Mertens amongst other familiar names involved in Galatasaray's 3-0 win against Fenerbahce.

Galatasaray punished toothless Fenerbahce thrice to win 3-0 in the Intercontinental Derby. 

Fenerbahce hosted this instalment of the derby at their Sukru Saracoglu stadium, but their advantage meant little on the day. 

Galatasaray scored first in the 32nd minute thanks to a strike from Sergio Oliveira, only four minutes after he was booked for dissent, the fourth yellow card at the time, in the feisty derby. 

Fenerbahce dominated possession but could not do much with it. The game dragged on with no goals until later in the second-half. 

PSG loanee Mauro Icardi found Kerem Akturkoglu just before the 80th minute for the game's second goal.

Icardi went from provider to scorer, as he found the back of the net very late in the game, in the 90+10 minute.

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This derby has never needed any extra narrative to spice it up, as it is one of the most bitter rivalries in the world. However, the stakes were as high as they could be this time, with only one point separating both teams at the top of the Turkey Super Lig. 

The win for Galatasaray takes them to 39 points, pulling them four points clear of second-placed Fenerbahce on 34 points.

Icardi, Mata, Mertens, Gomis and other familiar players in this tie

This match highlighted a trend that the Turkish league has seen frequently: an inflow of players who had previously played in Europe's bigger leagues.

Mauro Icardi came off the bench to grab a goal and an assist, Napoli legend Mertens started the game for Galatasaray, and ex-Premier League stars Juan Mata and Lucas Torreira came on as well for the eventual match winners. 

ISTANBUL - Mauro Icardi of Galatasaray AS scores (lr) Attila Szalai of Fenerbahce SK, Mauro Icardi of Galatasaray AS during the Turkish Super Lig match between Fenerbahce AS and Galatasaray AS at Ulker stadium on January 8
ISTANBUL - Mauro Icardi of Galatasaray AS scores (lr) Attila Szalai of Fenerbahce SK, Mauro Icardi of Galatasaray AS during the Turkish Super Lig match between Fenerbahce AS and Galatasaray AS at Ulker stadium on January 8

Bafetimbi Gomis and Patrick Van Ahnolt, who had careers in the Premier League, were unused substitutes, along with former Barcelona youngster Yusuf Demir.

Fenerbahce had two former Premier League players in their line-up, Michy Batshuayi and Joshua King.

They had World Cup star and former West Ham striker Enner Valencia on the bench.

Disappointing outing for Bright Osayi-Samuel

Nigeria’s Bright Osayi-Samuel was on the wrong end of the 3-0 scoreline. He started in what was a wing-back role for Fenerbahce.

Bright Osayi Samuel (L) of Fenerbahce and Sacha Boey of Galatasaray during the Turkish Super League match between Fenerbahce and Galatasaray at Ulker Stadium in Istanbul , Turkey on January 08, 2023
Bright Osayi Samuel (L) of Fenerbahce and Sacha Boey of Galatasaray during the Turkish Super League match between Fenerbahce and Galatasaray at Ulker Stadium in Istanbul , Turkey on January 08, 2023

Osayi-Samuel saw his side of the defense become porous to Galatasaray attacks, and offensively, he missed the only big chance Fenerbahce managed to create.

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