Turkish Super Lig Weekly returns for the 2025/26 campaign, with a preview of what is certainly a different action colleague, stars -lined and certainly Bonkers season of football. From another title race with high tension to the battle at the bottom, there is so much to look forward to.
Galatasaray look to ward off Fenerbahce and Mourinho
Three times title defender Galatasaray stormed to a record-expanding 25th Super Lig title in the last few months of the 2024/25 season, and they will be looking for a fast start on Friday, when they get a procedure against Gaziantep.
And they have strengthened their team in style, because they look to create a team that can also be competitive in the Champions League. After the excellent signing of the 29-year-old former Bayern Munich and Manchester City Man Leroy Sane on a free, they followed that with the historical signing of Victor Osimhen for 75 million euros.
Coming from a stunning loan spell at the Turkish giants last season and scored 37 goals in all competitions – a record number of an overseas striker – Osimhen decided that he wanted to stay in Istanbul. As a result, Galatasaray has erased the Super Lig -transfer record with around 55 million euros to permanently sign it.
They will undoubtedly be the big favorites to win a fourth consecutive title, but Fenerbahce and Jose Mourinho will be desperate to end their dominance and get the trophy for the first time since 2014.
Despite some noise around his future, the Portuguese manager in Turkey remains after a controversial season that saw him steal a lot of the headlines with what, frankly, fairly childish behavior.
However, he gets a second bite from the Kers and he has already strengthened his team with the loan that Jhon Duran van Al Nassr signed – a fantastic acquisition to lead the line. Moreover, they have brought Archie Brown and Nelson Semedo in, as well as the permanent signing of Milan Skriniar.
If they want to overcome their fierce rivals, they will have to concentrate on their talking on the field this time.
Both teams still have a few holes in their team, so expect more activity on the transfer market in the coming weeks. Galatasaray desperately needs a new keeper after Fernando Muslera left the club, while Fenerbahce misses an attacking firepower to replace Dusan Tadic and Edin Dzeko.
Duran in action for Fenerbahce during pre-seasončtk / image sports photo service / maciej rogowski
However, do not do on Besiktas that are with them during the title race. After she had finished fourth and no less than 33 points of the top position last season, they spent a lot of money on AC Milan striker Tammy Abraham and Benfica's Turkish midfielder Orkun Kokcu. Their best player in the past few seasons, Dson Fernandes, left for Spartak Moscow, which seems like a strange decision.
The balance of the team looks completely wrong, and a pretty pathetic 6-2 aggregated defeat against Shakhtar Donetsk in the qualification of the Europa League could be a worrying sign of the coming things. The pressure is already being run out of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
European pursuers
One of the largest teams in Turkey, Trabzonspor, has endured a only 2024/25 season, so that they are largely growing in the lower half of the table. But a late burst saw them climb up in seventh place and save somewhat proudly.
Their improved form came in early March with the appointment of highly valued manager Fatih Tekke. During his 11 games, Trabzonspor was the third best team in the competition, and only collected four fewer points than Fenerbahce.
This is a side that should be much higher on the table, and they hope to continue that momentum in the new season. They also signed Paul Onuachu from Southampton after an impressive stint two seasons ago. However, he will miss with an injury in the coming weeks.
Onuachu is back at Trabzonsporhilmi Tunahan Karakaya / Anadolu / Anadolu via AFP / Profimedia
SamsunSpor was one of the stories of 2024/25 and finished in third place under the impressive German coach Thomas Reis. If they succeed in ending their European qualifying campaign, they will fight on different fronts, which means that it will be difficult for them to replicate what they have achieved in the super lying previous term.
But they have done a few signing sessions and Reis has proven to be one of the best managers in the competition, so expect them to do well again.
After completing the past season at the Europa Conference League spots, Istanbul Basaksehir was busy in the transfer window and signed by the Abbosbekian Fayzullaev of Uzbekistan for a club record € 7.5 million, as well as Kasimpasa-Spits Nuno da Costa. The Cape Verdean attacker has scored 27 league goals in his last two seasons in Turkey, so he is proven at this level.
Istanbul Basaksehir's record signature Abbosbek Fayzullaevaa / Abaca / Abaca Press / Profimedia
In their very first season in the Super Ligte Eyupspor all the expectations to finish in sixth place and she almost missed a place in Europe. The most important man behind it was coach Arda Turan, but he is no longer at the club after he has made the switch to Shakhtar Donetsk. It is difficult to see how they even come close to expectations and instead find their second season much more challenging.
Newly promoted sides
Kocaelisor will be back in the Super Lig for the first time since 2009, after they have been crowned champion of the TFF 1. Lie. After their promotion, they appointed the former Galatasaray player and heavyweight name Selcuk Inan as a coach, after his unfair dismissal at Gaziantep last season – a smart appointment.
Genclerbirligi also provided automatic qualification at the top division just behind Kocaelispor, and they return after four years. Karagumruk joined them after just one season away from the Super Lig and defeated BandirmaSpor in a promotion -play -off.
Follow the new Turkish Super Light season with FlashScore!
The opening fixtures of the Uper Lig Seasonflash score