Following Beşiktaş’s 1-0 away win over Sivasspor, Beşiktaş Manager Mustafa Denizli assessed his side’s performance for the press:

“Any team can beat anybody in this league, so we had to be real careful not to drop points here. As you all know, following last week’s derby win against Fenerbahçe, we played a real tough match with Manchester United midweek, and although it didn’t show out there, I must admit we were a little bit tired coming into this game. Sivasspor, on the other hand, was last season’s runner-up, who desperately needed a win to move clear of the relegation zone.  Furthermore, they had two weeks to get ready for this fixture. All these factors combined made it a close match that could’ve gone either way. But despite of everything, my players gave all they had on the pitch and earned a crucial victory for us tonight. We stuck to our game plan from the opening whistle and did everything required to win.
At the end of Day 6 of the Super League, we were way behind in the table. But know we are sitting in second place, and only one point separates us from the leader. In spite of very tight schedule, we keep on winning, which is mark of a title-winning side. But in order to rest some of our clutch players and avoid possible injuries, I am going to rotate our line-up in future matches. So don’t get surprised if you see some different faces on our line-up in coming weeks.
Although the home side looked more dominant in the second half, we had better clear-cut chances than Sivas. With a little bit of luck and patience, we could’ve scored more goals. Nevertheless, what is important is to keep our winning streak alive, and if you can do that against a team that has been successful in the past it’s important.
As long as we maintain this positive momentum, it does not matter whether we finish the first half of the season in first or second place.
I have complete confidence in all my players. When they reach their full potentials, we will not worry about the others.”