After the 3-0 rout of Gaziantepspor our Technical Director Mustafa talked to the press:

‘‘In comparison to last week, our defense looked much better in this game. They remained in focus throughout the entire 90 minutes and avoided those silly mistakes. This is a good sign for our future games; because, if you want to win this race, your defense has to be as good as your offense. When you come to think of it, despite dropping two points at home last week, we actually collected four points from our last two matches against two formidable sides, who are yet to play against our rivals.

We definitely have a more competitive league this season, because not only there are more title contenders, but anybody can beat anybody regardless of its place in the standings. You never know what’s going to happen next week. However, we feel we are on the right track, and we are going to hang in there until the last game. I am sure, after tonight’s performance, you will all agree with me.

Since this was a crucial away game, and we could not afford to lose, we were a little uptight out at the beginning and spent the first half in our own end, relying mostly on counterattacks. However, we decided to come out of our own end in the second half and pushed forward more. This tactic immediately paid off its dividends and we found a quick goal. Spurred by this lead, we exerted more pressure on our opponent and dominated the remainder of the game.

Our first half’s defensive performance played a key role in tonight’s success. Our defense held firm and limited Gaziantepspor to a few scoring opportunities, demoralizing their forwards a long the way. Back-to-back second half goals took the pressure off our shoulders and enabled us to take control until the final whistle.

We are fully committed to win both the League and Turkish cups and working hard to bring them to our museum at the end of the season. But, as I told you, it is a long and difficult marathon; we will wait and see what future holds for us.’’