The Turkish record champions Galatasaray Istanbul finally want international success. FC Bayern Munich is there in the Champions League a real touchstone.
Galatasaray Istanbul’s chest couldn’t be wider these days. Only on Saturday (October 21st, 2023) will the Turkish champions face the city derby in the domestic Süperlig Besiktas won 2-1. The team has not lost any of its competitive games this season.
And that was because Galatasaray chose them Champions League first had to qualify, an impressive 17 games. “Gala” is second behind in the Süperlig table Fenerbahçe Istanbul, which got off to an even better start with nine wins.
The sporting highlight so far was the 3-2 win Manchester United in the Champions League. So it’s no surprise that the team will also be able to do well against FC Bayern Munich at home on Tuesday (from 6:45 p.m. in the live audio report and in the ticker at sportschau.de). The Ali Sami Yen stadium (52,650 seats) is also considered a “cauldron”.
Victory in Manchester is encouraging
Galatasaray has won the Turkish championship 23 times and is therefore the record winner. Their only international success was winning the UEFA Cup in the 1999/2000 season. The declared aim of the “Lions” is to soon play a larger role in Europe.
“We are one of the candidates for the next round. We showed that in the game in Manchester”coach Okan Buruk recently told the in-house TV station “GSTV”.
Sold on the transfer market
The 50-year-old has only been at the club since the summer of 2022, but is still adored by the fans. Buruk played for Galatasaray from 1991 to 2001 and later from 2006 to 2008. After Hamza Hamzaoglu, he is only the second coach to have previously won the championship with Galatasaray as a player.
In order to get off to an international start, “Gala” made a big splash on the transfer market in the summer. Center forward Mauro Icardi came from Paris Saint Germain to Istanbul. From the English Premier League The club signed, among others, central defender Davinson Sanchez and midfielder Tanguy Ndombélé (both Tottenham Hotspur) and the two offensive forces Wilfried Zaha (Crystal Palace) and Hakim Ziyech (FC Chelsea).
Four German-Turks in the team
And four German-Turks also joined the club. Midfielder Kerem Dembiray came from Bayer Leverkusen, defender Kaan Ayhan was signed by US Sassuolo after a loan. Günay Güvenc was brought in from Gaziantep FK as a substitute goalkeeper, midfielder Eyüp Aydın from FC Bayern Munich II is considered a promising player. German fans also know left-back Angelino, who moved from RB Leipzig. In total, Galatasaray signed 14 players and spent 29.5 million euros.
Fatih Demireli pulled the strings, especially when it came to signing the four German-Turks. The Munich native has been since October 2022 “Director Research & Development” at the club. “We asked ourselves where we should go. And what we want is international success. That requires quality in the squad.”said Demireli at “transfermarkt.de”.
Worried about Icardi
The problem: The game is designed too much for Icardi. The Argentine has already scored 14 goals in 15 games this season. And he, of all people, is threatening to miss the game against Bayern. The striker complained of an ankle injury in his right foot after the win against Besiktas.
But even with him it will be difficult for Galatasaray despite the current balance sheet. Because Bayern’s is even better. The German record champions have been unbeaten in the Champions League for 36 group games; most recently there were 15 wins in a row in the group phase. The last defeat – a 3-0 loss at Paris Saint-Germain – was six years ago.
Munich’s record in Turkey is also excellent. Galatasaray, on the other hand, has never won a Champions League home game against a German opponent. The only previous duel with Bayern was a 1-1 draw at home in the 1972 European Cup, with Munich winning the second leg 6-0.