Besiktas edge Ankaragucu in 5-goal thriller to retain Super Lig top spot

By Emre Asikci

ISTANBUL (AA) – Besiktas continued their unbeaten start to the Turkish Super Lig season on Sunday, beating Ankaragucu in a five-goal thriller to retain their top spot.

Hosts Ankaragucu drew first blood in the action-packed encounter, with Georgian attacker Giorgi Beridze giving them the lead in the 26th minute.

New signing Jackson Muleka equalized four minutes later, before English forward Dele Alli, another new recruit, put Besiktas ahead with his first Super Lig strike in the 35th minute.

Berizde was on the mark again two minutes after the break to level the scores.

Besiktas clinched the win in the 74th minute as Georges-Kevin Nkoudou tucked away a penalty kick.

The night went from bad to worse for Ankaragucu when defender Marlon Xavier was shown a straight red card in stoppage time.

Besiktas remain top of the standings with 13 points, while Ankaragucu are at the bottom with just one point in five games.

- Week 5 fixtures & results:

HangiKredi Umraniyespor vs Trabzonspor: 0-1

Demir Grup Sivasspor vs VavaCars Fatih Karagumruk: 0-0

Medipol Basaksehir vs Corendon Alanyaspor: 2-0

Bitexen Giresunspor vs Arabam.com Konyaspor: 0-1

Fenerbahce vs Yukatel Kayserispor: 2-0

Atakas Hatayspor vs Adana Demirspor: 1-1

Fraport TAV Antalyaspor vs Kasimpasa: 0-2

MKE Ankaragucu vs Besiktas: 2-3

Monday:

Galatasaray vs Gaziantep FK