Galatasaray get precious home win in Turkish league as archrivals lose

By Can Erozden

ANKARA (AA) - Galatasaray on Sunday beat Gaziantep FK 2-0 in a Turkish Spor Toto Super Lig match for a valuable victory as their archrivals Besiktas and Fenerbahce suffered defeats each in the same week.

The visitors were quite disciplined in defense after the kickoff in Istanbul's Nef Stadium as the Lions managed to break the deadlock just before the break.

Galatasaray's Romanian midfielder Olimpiu Morutan curled a left-footed strike in the penalty area, sending the ball into the far corner to score the opener in the 48th minute of the first half.

The home team cemented their lead as Turkish winger Kerem Akturkoglu scored on a counter-attack in the 73rd minute of the match, 2-0.

Algerian midfielder Sofiane Feghouli assisted Akturkoglu as the 23-year-old finished after a decent through ball.

This was also the winning goal for Galatasaray.

Victors Galatasaray did not make a mistake this weekend when their rivals and title contenders Besiktas and Fenerbahce lost their league matches each on Saturday.

Atakas Hatayspor shocked the defending Turkish champions Besiktas 1-0, and Fenerbahce were beaten by Ittifak Holding Konyaspor 2-1.

Galatasaray are now in the sixth spot in the Super Lig standings with 20 points.

Following the loss in Istanbul, Gaziantep FK have 12 points to sit in the 14th position.

Besiktas are in fourth place with 20 points. Meanwhile, Fenerbahce collected 19 points to chase Galatasaray.

One of the "Big Four", Trabzonspor are leading the league as they racked up 27 points in 11 matches.

- Sunday's results

Yukatel Kayserispor - VavaCars Fatih Karagumruk: 2-1

Aytemiz Alanyaspor - Goztepe: 2-2

Galatasaray - Gaziantep FK: 2-0