Besiktas and Shakhtar Donetsk face each other on Thursday in the first leg of a Europa League second qualifying round in Istanbul.
It is easily the most attractive and difficult fixture of the eight games for what is still an early stage of European competition, with the Ukrainians perennial Uefa Champions League competitors and Besiktas a Turkish giant.
The Europa League doesn’t offer the riches of the Champions League, but it is a respected tournament and European football is important for both clubs.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer enters his first full season as Besiktas manager after taking over in January when the team were seventh. A superb start saw them rise up the table to finish fourth.
Champions Galatasaray and second-placed Fenerbahce were both defeated by Solskjaer’s side, but he was always adamant that joining a club mid-season would always bring challenges. It was similar to his circumstances that saw him installed as Manchester United in December 2018.
Now, however, the Besiktas team and their coaching staff is his own. Substantial changes have been made in the summer transfer window – although nothing like the 22 players who left before the start of last season – with some high-profile departures.
Veteran Italian striker Ciro Immobile, 35, by far the biggest earner at Besiktas, moved to Bologna in Serie A, while former England international Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s deal was ripped up and he was paid off with a severance package, his performances deemed not up to scratch.
The incoming players have excited fans. English striker Tammy Abraham, 27, has signed on loan from Roma. Another loan player whose arrival has been welcomed is Turkish international Orkun Kokcu.
The 24-year-old midfield playmaker was born and raised as a Besiktas fan in the Netherlands before excellent form at Feyenoord earned him a €25 million move to Benfica in 2023, a record signing for a Portuguese club. There are also high hopes for those returning from loans, including Demir Ege Tiknaz and Kartal Yilmaz.
This is a younger, leaner Besiktas, and Solskjaer will be expected to continue the improvement and push harder against the Galatasaray/Fenerbahce duopoly. They finished a massive 33 and 22 points ahead of Besiktas last season respectively.
“It’s our team from the start in pre-season and we have worked quite hard and will be ready for the Shakhtar game,” Solskjaer told Turkish media last week.
“We have exciting players coming into the club. We came in and the team was not performing well. It was a difficult period – sixth or seventh position and not looking as a Besiktas team should. The team and fans were low on confidence and belief.
“We managed to turn the ship around and ended up in fourth. We worked hard on the mentality and the fitness.
“The president said he wanted to stabilise the club and we did – the team, energy, training ground and culture. So we have hope for this season. The president has shown ambition in the transfer window."
Besiktas had the second-best defence last season. Goalscoring was an issue, starting games too slow also a problem.
“Technically we were not good enough to break teams down in a low block,” added Solskjaer. “We want to be good in possession, counter attacking and pressing. With Tammy we are a different team with a big centre-forward, With Orkun, the right age, the playmaker, too.”
Solskjaer is enjoying his time in Turkey. “Six months here and I’ve enjoyed every minute,” he said. “I’m a stable guy. I’ve felt the passion here. The atmospheres in the stadium have positively surprised me at home. Incredible.
“The games are so stop start. Players stay down; the ball is in play 45 minutes if you are lucky. For me 60 minutes is normal.”
The Norwegian also offered a view on what happens off the pitch. “I’m very glad I didn’t play football myself in this era because of social media,” he said. “It’s a killer.
“Footballers are trying their best every day but it’s hard to focus on your job when you get criticised or praised a lot. You lose yourself. We work on this to be mentally stable. We want to create a team that the fans will like to watch. We want to create more legends.”
One of Besiktas’ best performances last season under Solskjaer was against Eyupsor, managed by Turkish football legend Arda Turan. Eyupspor finished third in the Turkish Lig last season. Besiktas beat them 3-1 away in February.
Shakhtar have a new coach: Turan. The 38-year-old is a talented and ambitious coach and he takes over a club in unusual circumstances – and not just because they play in a country at war.
Shakhtar’s third-place league finish last season, eight points behind Dynamo Kiev, was their lowest since 1996.
Domestic champions 16 times since, the club which hail from occupied Donetsk have been Champions League regulars and used the ensuing profits to remain the pre-eminent force in Ukrainian football. Not now.
And both sides could have hoped for a more forgiving start to what they hope will be a fruitful European campaign.
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
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The line up
Friday: Giggs, Sho Madjozi and Masego
Saturday: Nas, Lion Bbae, Roxanne Shante and DaniLeigh
Sole DXB runs from December 6 to 8 at Dubai Design District. Weekend pass is Dh295 while a one day pass is Dh195. Tickets are available from www.soledxb.com
Super Saturday results
4pm: Mahab Al Shimaal Group 3 | US$350,000 | (Dirt) | 1,200m
Winner: Drafted, Pat Dobbs (jockey), Doug Watson (trainer).
4.35pm: Al Bastakiya Listed | $300,000 | (D) | 1,900m
Winner: Divine Image, Brett Doyle, Charlie Appleby.
5.10pm: Nad Al Sheba Turf Group 3 | $350,000 | (Turf) | 1,200m
Winner: Blue Point, William Buick, Charlie Appleby.
5.45pm: Burj Nahaar Group 3 | $350,000 | (D) | 1,600m
Winner: Muntazah, Jim Crowley, Doug Watson.
6.20pm: Dubai City of Gold Group 2 | $300,000 | (T) | 2,410m
Winner: Old Persian, William Buick, Charlie Appleby.
6.55pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round 3 Group 1 | $600,000 | (D) | 2,000m
Winner: Capezzano, Mickael Barzalona, Salem bin Ghadayer.
7.30pm: Jebel Hatta Group 1 | $400,000 | (T) | 1,800m
Winner: Dream Castle, Christophe Soumillon, Saeed bin Suroor.
Fireball
Moscow claimed it hit the largest military fuel storage facility in Ukraine, triggering a huge fireball at the site.
A plume of black smoke rose from a fuel storage facility in the village of Kalynivka outside Kyiv on Friday after Russia said it had destroyed the military site with Kalibr cruise missiles.
"On the evening of March 24, Kalibr high-precision sea-based cruise missiles attacked a fuel base in the village of Kalynivka near Kyiv," the Russian defence ministry said in a statement.
Ukraine confirmed the strike, saying the village some 40 kilometres south-west of Kyiv was targeted.
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
Race card
5pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (Turf) 1,600m; 5.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,400m
6pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,400m; 6.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,200m
7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 2,200m
7.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh100,000 (PA) 1,400m
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
if you go
The flights
Etihad and Emirates fly direct to Kolkata from Dh1,504 and Dh1,450 return including taxes, respectively. The flight takes four hours 30 minutes outbound and 5 hours 30 minute returning.
The trains
Numerous trains link Kolkata and Murshidabad but the daily early morning Hazarduari Express (3’ 52”) is the fastest and most convenient; this service also stops in Plassey. The return train departs Murshidabad late afternoon. Though just about feasible as a day trip, staying overnight is recommended.
The hotels
Mursidabad’s hotels are less than modest but Berhampore, 11km south, offers more accommodation and facilities (and the Hazarduari Express also pauses here). Try Hotel The Fame, with an array of rooms from doubles at Rs1,596/Dh90 to a ‘grand presidential suite’ at Rs7,854/Dh443.
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
Nancy 9 (Hassa Beek)
Nancy Ajram
(In2Musica)
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About Seez
Company name/date started: Seez, set up in September 2015 and the app was released in August 2017
Founder/CEO name(s): Tarek Kabrit, co-founder and chief executive, and Andrew Kabrit, co-founder and chief operating officer
Based in: Dubai, with operations also in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon
Sector: Search engine for car buying, selling and leasing
Size: (employees/revenue): 11; undisclosed
Stage of funding: $1.8 million in seed funding; followed by another $1.5m bridge round - in the process of closing Series A
Investors: Wamda Capital, B&Y and Phoenician Funds
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