The team haven’t lost any of that momentum over the summer, starting the season with five wins out of five games, scoring 15 goals and conceding just one. That’s seen them already build up a five-point lead over city rivals Fenerbahçe SK at the top of the table.
The player who’s contributed the most to those goals so far is Baris Alper Yilmaz, who has registered three goals and three assists in the domestic league. The 25-year-old winger is followed in the club’s internal list by Mauro Icardi and Eren Elmalı with three goals each.
Striker Victor Osimhen, who Eintracht fans know all too well from the 2022/23 round of 16 encounter with Napoli, is not far away in the goalscoring chart with two goals. However, the 26-year-old Nigerian, who signed permanently for Gala in the summer after a successful loan spell, is currently doubtful with a knock.
In the latest transfer window, the likes of Ilkay Gündogan (Manchester City), Leroy Sané (Bayern Munich), Wilfried Singo, Ismail Jakobs (both AS Monaco), Przemyslaw Frankowski (RC Lens) and goalkeeper Uğurcan Çakır from Trapzonspor arrived in Istanbul.
The Lions normally set up with a four-man defence under coach Okan Buruk, the centre of which has been marshalled by Abdülkerim Bardakcı and Davinson Sánchez in the last two league games. The two former Bundesliga players Sané and Gündogan, who boast the combined experience of 180 Champions League matches as well as 152 international caps for Germany, started on the left wing and the centre of midfield respectively against Eyüpsor at the weekend, with Icardi leading the line.
In the first five games of the season, the team have posted averages of:
The first and last time the two clubs met was in autumn 1992, when the Turkish side progressed to the last 16 of the UEFA Cup over two legs.
