Besiktas join Super Lig title race with critical win

Besiktas beat Kasimpasa 3-2 by late winner scored by forward Umut Nayir as Sunday's victory takes them to number 2 spot

By Can Erozden

ANKARA (AA) - Turkish football club Besiktas earned a critical away win against Kasimpasa 3-2 on Sunday to cling to the Super Lig's fierce title race.

Kasimpasa were down to 10 men in the 15th minute as the home team's Egyptian defender Karim Hafez was sent off after a foul.

But they managed to score the opener nine minutes after Hafez's red card as Turkish forward Mustafa Pektemek -- formerly of Besiktas -- gave the 1-0 lead to Kasimpasa in the 24th minute.

Besiktas netted the equalizer near the end of the first half as Turkish left-back Caner Erkin scored it.

Guinean forward Bengali-Fode Koita made it 2-1 for Kasimpasa in the second half, but Besiktas pulled even again with Turkish forward Umut Nayir serving as scorer. His goal made Besiktas hopeful for a win.

Ten-man Kasimpasa couldn't withstand Besiktas’s pressure as Nayir scored the winning goal for his team in the 90+5th minute.

The 3-2 win took the Black Eagles to the number two spot in the Super Lig standings. Besiktas had 27 points in the league led by Sivasspor, which has earned 30 points in 14 weeks.

Besiktas got their sixth consecutive league win on Sunday after beating Galatasaray (1-0), Antalyaspor (2-1), Yukatel Denizlispor (1-0), Ittifak Holding Konyaspor (1-0), Istikbal Mobilya Kayserispor (4-1), and Kasimpasa (3-2).

- At least 5 teams chasing title

This season the Super Lig has seen a relentless race for the title as underdogs Sivasspor are still on top with 30 points.

They are followed by Besiktas with 27 points. Trabzonspor, one of the “Big Four,” are in the number three spot as the Black Sea club bagged 26 points in 14 matches.

Title contenders from Istanbul Medipol Basaksehir have 26 points as well. Fenerbahce, who won their last league title in 2014, come in fifth with 25 points.

Galatasaray, the latest Super Lig champs, have 23 points to be in sixth place in the league table.

- Sunday's results:

Konyaspor - Gaziantep FK: 0-0

Antalyaspor - Trabzonspor: 1-3

Yukatel Denizlispor - Medipol Basaksehir: 1-1

Kasimpasa - Besiktas: 2-3

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