Fenerbahce welcome already eliminated Celtic FC in their Group A, looking to confirm their place in the UEFA Europa League round of 32.
No one would say in the beginning of the group stage that Molde would be topping the table, leaving behind teams such as Fenerbahce, Ajax and Celtic. Fenerbahce’s away win in the previous fixture against Solskjaer’s squad (2-0) spiced things up a bit, and now a victory over Celtic  could secure them the first position in the standings, provided that Ajax record a home win against Molde.
Fenerbahce are in a good position, needing only a single point to secure their place in the knockout stages from the match against Celtic, who are one of this years’ biggest disappointments. After their previous encounter at Celtic Park (2-2), Pereira’s squad went three games without conceding a goal, which led them to the second place in the Group.
Since the win is not a must in this match, the Turks will not have to go storming into attack, but they will most surely rely on their best scorer Fernandao to finish the job. Fenerbahce may have missed the opportunity to top the Turkish Super Lig after a draw at Gaziantepspor (2-2) last weekend, but they will try not miss the chance to secure a win in their 200th UEFA club competition game.
There has been a lot of disappointments with Celtic’s performances in Europe this season. Not only that they failed to qualify to the Champions League Group Stage, but the Bhoys were disasterous in Europa League as well. With two draws and three consecutive defeats they are occupying the last place in the Group A, having lost all chances to qualify to the knockout stage weeks ago.
Celtic will play only to save their pride, after defeat to Ajax sealed their fate in their last Europa League fixture. The Celts hope for a good performance and a positive result, but it seems that they have already given up.
A much bigger concern for the Scottish side is the current political situation in Turkey. The fans are advised not to go to this game due to terrorist threats, but transportation is secured for the ones that will come anyway. All of this can create additional pressure for the away team.
Head to Head
The sides drew 2-2 in Glasgow when they met for the first time in UEFA competition on matchday two, Celtic’s first encounter with Turkish opponents.
In their only previous games against Scottish teams,Fenerbahce eliminated Celtic’s rivals Rangers FC 2-1 on aggregate in the 2001/02 UEFA Champions League third qualifying round.
Match Facts
- The 2-2 draw between the two in October was the first meeting between the sides in European competition.
- In that match at Celtic Park, the Bhoys threw away a two goal lead, as Fernandao scored twice for Fener.
- Fenerbahce have never lost to a Scottish side in European competition (W1 D2).
- The Bhoys have conceded two or more goals in each of their last seven European contests (15 in total).
- Fenerbahce have been beaten just three times in 13 home games since the introduction of the Europa League format (W7 D3).
- Celtic have recorded just one win in their last 11 away matches in Europe (D5 L5).
- Nani has created more chances than other Fenerbahce player in the competition so far (12).
- Kris Commons has created more chances than any other Celtic player in the Europa League (12) and has been directly involved in five of their seven goals (three goals and two assists).
Team News
Fenerbahce will certainly be without Nani and Kjaer who are suspended, while Hakan Cinemre, Raul Meireles and Van Persie will probably miss the game due to injuries.
Celtic’s coach Ronny Della has almost the entire team at his disposal, except Scott Brown (knee) and Charlie Mulgrew (thigh) who are supposed to miss the match.
From ; SS.com
