Galatasaray set new standard in Turkish football

By Ercan Cakar

ISTANBUL (AA) - Galatasaray has dominated Turkish football for most of the past decade, winning 14 of 24 domestic trophies in the last eight seasons.

The Lions completed a triple in 2019 by winning the Turkish top-tier Super Lig title, Turkish Cup and Turkish Super Cup.

It captured the Super Lig title and Turkish Super Cup five times between 2011 and 2019 and bagged the Turkish Cup four times. The tournament has been rebranded as the Ziraat Turkish Cup for sponsorship reasons.

The Turkish Super Lig club have set the standard for the domestic league, winning the Super Lig in 2012, 2013, 2015, 2018 and 2019.

The team also lifted the Turkish Super Cup in 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016 and 2019 and won three consecutive Turkish Cup titles from 2014 - 2016.

Galatasaray were also the defending Turkish Cup champions as it claimed this local trophy in 2019.

And it won the 2019 Turkish Super Cup, with a 1-0 shutout Wednesday against Akhisarspor in the final in Ankara.

- Archrivals Fenerbahce face title drought

While Galatasaray is now the gold standard of Turkish football, Fenerbahce, which is regarded as one of the most important clubs in Turkey, have yet to win a domestic title since 2014.

The Yellow Canaries managed just four titles in the last eight seasons.

The club clinched the league title in 2014 and won the Turkish Cup in 2012 and 2013.

The last time the Istanbul club hoisted the Turkish Super Cup trophy was in 2014 as the team seeks to return to the glorious days atop the Turkish league.

- Besiktas earn back-to-back league titles

As Galatasaray rose, Besiktas managed just two Super Lig titles in 2016 and 2017.

The Black Eagles were also winners of the 2011 Turkish Cup.

Meanwhile, Konyaspor managed a double, bagging the Turkish Cup and Turkish Super Cup in 2017.

Similar to Konyaspor, Akhisarspor lifted the Turkish Cup and Turkish Super Cup in 2018.

*Writing by Emre Asikci