End of winning streak for Beşiktaş

Eskişehirspor ended the Black Eagles’ four-match winning streak to grab their second victory in a row in the process



Beşİktaş's run of good form came to an end on Sunday night against Eskişehirspor as they lost 1-0 in the Turkish Spor Toto Super League at the Eskisehir Ataturk Stadium. Eskişehirspor won the battle on their home turf thanks to an early goal scored by Turkish leftback Kaan Kanak. The loss leaves Beşiktaş second in the standings, behind Galatasaray, and ends their winning streak of four games. The Istanbul club's prolific Senegalese forward Demba Ba did not play in the match due to injury.Beşiktaş manager Slaven Bilic underlined that his side must forget about the 1-0 loss against Eskişehirspor and focus on the Europa League Round of 32 second leg game against Liverpool. Liverpool won the first leg at Anfield 1-0, the return game will be played at the Atatürk Olympic stadium on February 26. "Now, we must forget this match and focus on the Liverpool game," Bilic was quoted as saying on the official Beşiktaş website.Bilic also revealed that he decided not to start Gökhan Töre due to a slight injury. "In addition to tiredness, not having Gökhan Töre, who had a slight injury, in the lineup reduced our effectiveness up front," he added. Liverpool beat Southampton away in the Premier League to move into sixth place on 45 points. Beşiktaş have yet to lose against English opposition at home this season. The Eagles drew against Arsenal in the Champions League play-offs and beat Tottenham in the Europa League group stages.Bilic said their energy lowered during the game, especially in the second half, and they could not force the game. He said, "Eskişehirspor deserved to win. We were good in the first half. We fell behind after an unlucky goal. We sent some players in but could not produce the results and get in position. Eskişehirspor were more energetic and stronger than us." On Gökhan Töre and Atiba's having been getting out of the game, Bilic said, "This affected the game. Gökhan was injured and we had to rotate. The Liverpool game has seriously affected us. We were not capable enough to win.""We are disappointed and sad but at the same time we are professionals. We will prepare not only for Liverpool but also for our next match in the Super League." Beşiktaş midfielder Veli Kavlak underlined that his side has no time to be upset about losing 1-0 against Eskişehirspor as they must focus on Liverpool."Of course, we are deeply disappointed with the loss, however, there is no time for mourning because we've got an important game coming up against Liverpool. I hope our fans will come out to support us," Kavlak told the official Beşiktaş website.Kavlak also revealed that he thought the pitch quality had a negative effect on the Black Eagles' performance."Despite making a bright start in the game, we conceded an unlucky goal. Then, we pushed hard for the equalizer, but they defended well, and the poor pitch prevented us from staging our real game," he added.Kavlak was born in Austria but is also a Turkish citizen through his parents and eligible to play under a domestic status in Turkey.Eskişehirspor manager Michael Skibbe also believes his side deserved to beat Beşiktaş. "We counter-attacked well, we executed our game plan and deserved to win, the team performance today was fantastic," Skibbe told Lig Tv. The win saw Skibbe's side move into 12th place in the Süper Lig on 23 points. Eskişehirspor take on relegation battlers Rizespor in the Yeni Rize stadium next week. Skibbe was appointed manager of EsEs in December replacing Ertuğrul Sağlam. EsEs were in the relegation zone when the German coach took over at the club. Skibbe spent six months at EsEs during the 2010-11 seasons during which time he took charge of 17 games, winning nine, drawing three and losing five.Elsewhere, Kasımpaşa rescued a point at home following a late goal from Scarione in a 1-1 draw with Trabzonspor. The Istanbul-based side are still however without a victory in their last five games and remain in 10th place in the league. Trabzonspor have drawn their fifth game in a row away from home and remain in sixth place in the league. The Black Sea storm take on Karabukspor next weekend.Trabzonspor manager Ersun Yanal underlined that his side should have done a better job at protecting their lead against Kasımpaşa. "Our opposition scored in the last minutes and only had a few chances, the goal was a deflection so there is not much we could do, it is just disappointing to have blown two points," Yanal told Lig Tv after the game.Kasımpaşa manager Shota Arveladze revealed that he believes his side warranted at least a point against Trabzonspor. "We battled hard for a point and were rewarded in the last minutes, I would have been really disappointed had we lost, we deserved that," Arveladze told Lig Tv. Kasımpaşa moved into 10th place on 25 points following the score draw against Trabzonspor.Mersin have recorded their third win in a row in the Turkish Super Lig with a 2-1 victory over Karabukspor. The home side have been on fire since the start of the second half of the season and have moved up to sixth place. Karabükspor remain in the relegation zone following defeat with 17 points in 21 games.Gençlerbirliği picked up a crucial three points against Balıkesirspor. The Ankara-based side won by a single goal scored in the 49th minute by Berkan Emir (own goal). Mesut Bakkal lead his side to victory in his first game in charge. Gençlerbirliği have moved up to ninth place in the league with 25 points in 21 games.