Canaries overcome depleted Eagles, stay unbeaten at home

The Yellow Canaries, as Fenerbahçe is called, emerged as the winners of this not-so-publicized derby on Sunday, scoring a goal in each half to beat a depleted Beşiktaş in week 25 of the Spor Toto Super League and remain undefeated at their Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium this season.

“We were the better side in the first half but could not increase our lead,” said Fenerbahçe coach Aykut Kocaman. “Beşiktaş took over the initiative in the second half and put pressure on us. But we are extremely happy after beating one of our biggest championship rivals,” he noted.

A Fenerbahçe victory ahead of this derby was almost a foregone conclusion, not only because the Canaries were playing at home, but also because the Eagles had been reduced to bare bones due to a series of injuries and suspensions.

With key players like Portugal forward Hugo Almeida, defender İsmail Köybaşı, winger Roberto Hilbert and first-choice keeper Rüştü Reçber injured -- and Portuguese red card offenders Manuel Fernandes and Ricardo Quaresma suspended -- the Eagles faced a losing battle against the Canaries.

Fener coach Aykut Kocaman dropped slumping striker Semih Şentürk from the squad and benched misfiring Cameroon forward Henri Bienvenu. The coach, however, gave newly signed Senegal striker Moussa Sow, just back from African Cup of Nations duty, a place in the starting 11.

Kocaman also surprised everyone by fielding walking-wounded winger Gökhan Gönül and midfielders Emre Belözoğlu and Mehmet Topuz in his first 11 -- but the fact of the matter is that only Topuz could last 90 minutes. Gönül was replaced by Orhan Şam in the 41st, and Selçük Şahin came in as a replacement for Belözoğlu in the 57th.

Yobo breaks deadlock

The Canaries took the game to Beşiktaş, aka the Black Eagles, immediately after 34-year-old referee Özgür Yankaya, officiating his first ever derby, blew the whistle for kickoff at 7 p.m.

The pressure yielded dividends as Fener earned a corner kick in the 14th. Captain-playmaker Alex de Souza, as usual, took the kick and a goalmouth scramble ensued, enabling Nigeria defender Joseph Yobo to whack a loose ball into the back of the net. There was no other goal in the first half that ended 1-0: advantage Fenerbahçe.

Things changed in the second half, however, with Beşiktaş doing the attacking and Fenerbahçe the defending. But without a natural striker on the team, the Eagles could not score. Mustafa Pektemek, acquired from Gençlerbirliği this season, is always a sub; so is Slovakia forward Filip Holosko and, in spite of all the pressure, the Eagles couldn't equalize.

Beşiktaş's German midfielder Fabian Ernst -- the best Eagle of the night -- had three clear chances, including a shot that hit the far post and went out of play, but squandered them all.

And to show how Carlos Carvalhal's men dominated the game, the Eagles had 10 corner kicks against three for Fener. You can't win if you can't score in football, and that's what happened.

As the Eagles were still pushing men forward in the first minute of stoppage time (91st), the Canaries caught them off guard. Caner Erkin, who replaced Alex in the 84th, sent a perfect pass to an unmarked Sow in the Beşiktaş box, and the Senegalese player made no mistake in beating keeper Cenk Gönen for a second time to give the Canaries a lucky 2-0 victory.

This defeat also means the Eagles have forgotten the art of scoring. Beşiktaş has not only lost three matches in a row, but has also not scored a single goal. The Eagles were beaten 1-0 away by Kayserispor in week 23, lost by the same score at home to newcomer Mersin İdman Yurdu in week 24 and Sunday's defeat wrapped up a dismal slide.

And coach Carvalhal, naturally, lamented after the match. “First of all, I would like to congratulate Fenerbahçe for its victory,” he said. “But, in my opinion, the winner was not the best team on the pitch. Simply put, we could not make something of the chances that came our way,” he further stated.

Trouble in the stands

Fenerbahçe awarded 2,400 seats to Beşiktaş fans, but trouble broke out and firecrackers were thrown in the stands at opposing fans. Several fans were injured and taken to a hospital.

Furthermore, Fener fans swore at and cursed Beşiktaş throughout the match, and the Canaries now face the possibility of playing behind closed doors as the Professional Football Disciplinary Committee meets this week to mete out punishments to wrongdoers.