Beşiktaş will look to complete the job against Hradec Kralove on Thursday when the Czech side visits Istanbul for the second leg of their UEFA Europa League third qualifying round tie.
Beşiktaş hold a 1-0 advantage from last week's first leg in the Czech Republic and will advance to the playoff round with a win or draw at Tüpraş Stadium.
The winner will move one step closer to the Europa League league phase, while the loser will continue its European campaign in the Conference League playoff round.
Semih Kılıçsoy gave Beşiktaş the advantage in the 80th minute last week, four minutes after coming off the bench. The visitors had already been reduced to 10 men when Kassoum Ouattara was sent off for a second yellow card in the 71st minute, but they defended their lead to secure a valuable away victory and another clean sheet.
The result continued Beşiktaş's strong defensive start to their European campaign. They have not conceded in any of their three qualifying matches this season, having previously eliminated Midtjylland 3-0 on aggregate with clean sheets in both legs.
Another shutout in Istanbul would put Vincenzo Italiano's side in a strong position to advance. Beşiktaş also have home-field advantage, having beaten Midtjylland 1-0 at home in the previous round.
With the Turkish Super Lig season set to begin Friday, Italiano can keep his attention on European competition and securing Beşiktaş's place in the next round.
Hradec Kralove, however, will arrive in Istanbul knowing the first leg could easily have produced a different result.
The Czech side created four big chances and put nine shots on target, but goalkeeper Alexander Nübel made eight saves to preserve Beşiktaş's narrow advantage.
Hradec responded at the weekend with a 2-1 victory over Banik Ostrava in the Czech First League, with Tom Slončík scoring both goals. The result gave David Horejš's side seven points from its opening three league matches and offered a boost ahead of the difficult trip to Istanbul.
But Hradec now face a simple requirement: They must score if they are to keep their Europa League hopes alive. Beşiktaş have yet to concede in Europe this season, while Hradec are trying to reach the main stage of a UEFA competition for the first time since their appearance in the 1995-96 Cup Winners' Cup.
Thursday's match will be Beşiktaş's 262nd in European competition. The Turkish club have recorded 100 wins, 50 draws and 111 losses in their previous 261 matches, scoring 352 goals and conceding 395.
It will also be their 131st European home match. Beşiktaş have won 65, drawn 26 and lost 39 of their previous 130 games at home in UEFA competition, scoring 201 goals and conceding 150.
Against Czech opposition, Beşiktaş have won three of their seven previous meetings, along with one draw and three defeats.
Their first meeting with a Czech club came against Slavia Prague in the 2002-03 UEFA Cup. Beşiktaş won 4-2 at home before losing 1-0 away to advance on aggregate.
They faced Sparta Prague in the 2003-04 Champions League group stage, winning 1-0 in Istanbul before losing 2-1 in Prague. In the 2010-11 Europa League qualifying rounds, they defeated Viktoria Plzen 3-0 at home and drew 1-1 away.
Last week's 1-0 victory over Hradec was their most recent meeting with a Czech opponent.
Beşiktaş have no fresh injury concerns following the first leg, but Ouattara is suspended after being sent off.
Kılıçsoy could be rewarded with a starting place after making an immediate impact off the bench in the Czech Republic. The forward replaced Vaclav Cerny in the 76th minute and scored the winning goal four minutes later.
Wilfred Ndidi is another player pushing for a starting role after coming on for Orkun Kökçü last week.
Hradec have a longer list of absentees. Tomas Wiesner and Jakub Kucera remain sidelined with knee injuries, while Tomas Petrasek is dealing with a calf problem.
Adam Binar, Viktor Zentrich and Juraj Chvatal are also unavailable. Adam Vlkanova remains doubtful as he continues to recover from illness.
Slončík will be one of Hradec's biggest attacking threats after his two-goal performance against Banik Ostrava. Mick van Buren and Ondrej Mihalik are expected to provide support in attack.
What is at stake
If Beşiktaş eliminate Hradec, they will face Kauno Zalgiris of Lithuania in the Europa League playoff round.
Kauno Zalgiris reached the playoff round after losing both legs of their Champions League third qualifying-round tie against Dinamo Zagreb, 5-0 and 2-1.
If Beşiktaş fail to overcome Hradec, they will drop into the Conference League playoff round, where they would face Panathinaikos.
