Turkish powerhouse Galatasaray moved top of the Süper Lig with the Istanbul derby win against Fenerbahçe Saturday.
The Lions currently have 48 points from 23 matches, same as archrival Fenerbahçe but are ahead on goal difference.
Galatasaray picked up the key 1-0 away victory thanks to a close-range strike from one of its latest signings, Egyptian forward Mostafa Mohamed.
The visitor started off well in the first half with more possession and authority. Host Fenerbahçe made occasional runs forward but was mostly held in its own half.
In the 39th minute, Galatasaray goalie Fernando Muslera produced a brilliant save to tip over a strike from Jose Sosa.
Neither team was able to break the deadlock in the first half. Galatasaray’s Mohamed scored the winning goal with a close-range finish in the 54th minute.
In the 75th minute, Ozan Tufan equalized with a header, but the goal was disallowed for offside after a video assistant referee (VAR) review. Mesut Özil, who made his home debut for Fenerbahçe, had provided the cross after coming on as a substitute in the 62nd minute. A free-kick from Özil was also saved by Muslera.
Fenerbahçe was clearly struggling without several regulars in Brazilian defensive midfielder Luiz Gustavo, Greek midfielder Dimitrios Pelkas, and Italian winger Diego Perotti.
Picking up a 35th win in 128 Süper Lig games against Fenerbahçe, Galatasaray manager Fatih Terim said the team did not compromise on its dominant style of play, especially in the first 30 minutes.
“Winning this game was important but it is even more important to climb to the top of the league,” he added.
For his part, Fenerbahce head coach Erol Bulut said his team was in control during some parts of the game.
“We performed differently in the first and second halves. The whole second half, we controlled the game but missed many goal-scoring opportunities,” he said.
