Fenerbahce risk chance to participate UEFA competitions

By Fatih Erel

ISTANBUL (AA) - Turkish football giants Fenerbahce salvaged a point in their game against Yukatel Denizlispor, with a goal in the stoppage time making the score 2-2 on Saturday.

With this home match result in Istanbul, Fenerbahce jeopardized their chance to participate in not only the UEFA Champions League but also UEFA Europa League.

Fenerbahce have gone winless in its last six matches in Turkey's premier league, currently ranked sixth with 40 points, 12 points behind the leader.

- Turkey sends five teams to UEFA competitions

The winners of the Turkish league will participate in UEFA Champions League, while the runners-up will play in the Champions League qualifiers.

The third and fourth clubs will participate in the UEFA Europa League.

The winners of the Turkish Cup will also compete in the Europa League. If one of the top four clubs win the Turkish Cup, the fifth will also join the Europa League.

Last Sunday, Fenerbahce parted ways with head coach Ersun Yanal over the club's poor performance in recent weeks.

Trabzonspor beat Fenerbahce 2-1 on Tuesday in the first leg game of the Ziraat Turkish Cup semifinals, gaining a slight advantage at home.

Fenerbahce also nearly lost their chance to lift the Turkish Cup trophy this season.

The second legs of the semifinals will be held on April 21 and 22, with the final game to be held at Istanbul's Ataturk Olympic Stadium on May 5.

With their latest win over Goztepe on Saturday, Medipol Basaksehir maintained their lead in week 25 of Turkey's premier football league.

The runners-up Trabzonspor are now three points behind the leaders with one game in hand.

In an upcoming away game on Tuesday, Trabzonspor will face BtcTurk Yeni Malatyaspor in a postponed game.

With the win, Basaksehir stood atop the Turkish Super Lig with 52 points.

In an away game, the second-standing Trabzonspor drew Gaziantep FK to have 49 points in 24 games.

Basaksehir with 52 points are followed by Trabzonspor with 49 points and Galatasaray and Sivasspor with 48 points each.

Two Turkish Super Lig title contenders will also meet this weekend as reigning champs Galatasaray are slated to face Sivasspor in an away game on Sunday.