Fenerbahce vs Istanbulspor Prediction: The Yellow Canaries Too Strong To Be Held At Arms Length By City Rivals

The 31st round of the Super Lig sees Fenerbahce host city rivals Istanbulspor at the Şükrü Saracoğlu.

Will the Yellow Canaries retain their dominance in this match by earning an easy win against a team they have won seven consecutive matches against, or will they suffer a surprising defeat at home?

Fenerbahce

Form: WWWLW

The Yellow Canaries traveled to Başakşehir Fatih Terim Stadium to face Istanbul Basaksehir, and courtesy of goals from substitute João Pedro in the closing minutes, they pulled off an incredible comeback to win 2:1.

Prior to that, they were playing Ankaragucu at home and found themselves down a goal in the 81st minute. However, they were able to tie the score through Enner Valencia's penalty in the 87th minute, and though it appeared they were about to split the spoils, it wasn't until Miguel Crespo came off the bench that the game would turn on its head as he rattled the net in the closing seconds to give his side a 2:1 victory at the end of the match.

They have been in fantastic form recently at the Şükrü Saracoğlu, losing only three of their past 14 matches while recording ten victories and a draw to accumulate 31 points, and they will be hoping it will be enough to see off a side that has been in poor form.

In the rankings, they are currently in second place with 63 points, six points behind first place and one point ahead of third-placed Besiktas.

Probable Starting XI

Formation: 4-4-2

Egribayat; Kadioglu, Akaydin, Szalai, Alioski; Osayi-Samuel, Willian Arao, Crespo, Kahveci; Valencia, Rossi

Istanbulspor

Form: DWLLL

The Boğalar's most recent home match saw them held to an exciting 3:3 draw against Antalyaspor, and while they did get a critical point, it wasn't enough to alleviate their relegation fears.

Fatih Tekke's men have struggled for consistency in their last five matches, with one win, one draw, and three losses to accumulate 4 points, and their defense was not one to be relied on, conceding 10 goals and keeping only one clean sheet in a 1:0 win over Istanbul Basaksehir at home.

Motivation levels are low when playing away because they have lost eight of their last ten away games and won just two. When looking at their last 14 away games, they have lost nine, won four and drawn one, so they don't seem like a team that will pose a challenge to the home team in this game.

They presently occupy 15th place with 28 points, and are only one point ahead of the relegation zone which is currently occupied by Giresunspor in 16th place.

Probable Starting XI

Formation: 5-2-3

Arda; Yasar, Yesil, Mehremic, Deli, Aksu; Sarikaya, Rroca; Eyenga-Lokilo, Eze, Ethemi

Match Facts

• Fenerbahce has won seven straight games against Istanbulspor.
• Istanbulspor has lost seven consecutive away matches against Fenerbahce.
• Fenerbahce averages 2.79 goals per game at home, while Istanbulspor averages 1 goal per game away.

Head-To-Head

Fenerbahce has won 22 of the last 27 matches, Istanbulspor has won one, and there have been two draws, with a goal difference of 55-15 in favor of Fenerbahce.

Expert Betting Tips

Fenerbahce will know that they cannot afford to drop points from now on if they are to have any hope of finishing the season in first place, which at the moment appears unlikely given the rate at which league leaders Galatasaray have been moving in.

Istanbulspor understands that extracting something positive out from Jorge Jesus' men will be a difficult challenge, especially away from home, where they've been in poor form this season, making a convincing loss for them inevitable.

Fenerbahce have been the dominant team in this match and are presently on a seven-match winning streak against them, during which time they have scored 24 goals, and they should have no issue earning a clear victory in this meeting. 

As a result, expect Fenerbahce to score more than 2.5 goals in this match against a team that has a porous defense this season, ranking second-worst in the Super Lig with 55 goals conceded in 30 games.

• Total 1 - Over 2.5 for 1.80
• CS - 3:0 for 8.00
• Both Teams To Score - No for 1.83