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Fenerbahçe beat Sivasspor to become the first team in the land to garner 3,001 points in 1,759 matches in 54 seasons since the inception of the Turkish league in 1959. Saturday´s win also meant the Canaries extending their unbeaten run at Kadıköy to 36 games
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The Canaries -- cheered by 43,000 or so female fans and children under 12 who were allowed to attend the match -- turned a disadvantage into an advantage as they came from 2-1 down in the first half to beat Sivasspor 4-2 in an action-packed thriller in Kadıköy.
Fenerbahçe thus became the first football team in the land to garner 3,001 points in 1,759 matches in 54 seasons since the inception of the Turkish league in 1959. It is also worth noting that the Canaries were the first team to record 1,000 league victories.
Saturday´s victory also meant the Canaries extending their unbeaten run at Kadıköy to 36 games. Never since Fenerbahçe was beaten 3-2 by Bursaspor in week 22 of the 2009-2010 season on Feb. 22, 2010, has the team tasted defeat again at home. In the 36 league matches played since then, the Canaries have won 30 and drawn six.
Loss to Samsun was unthinkable
Aykut Kocaman´s Fenerbahçe, humiliated 3-1 away by Samsunspor in week 26 on Feb. 12, could not afford to drop points on Saturday. The Canaries therefore took the game to Sivasspor immediately after kickoff at 7 p.m. and were rewarded only after four minutes when lefty Emre Belözoğlu scored during a goalmouth scramble to give his side a 1-0 lead.
Television replays, however, showed that the goal should have been disallowed because Fener captain playmaker Alex de Souza was in an offside position and had clearly blocked the view of Sivasspor keeper Nihat Şahin when Emre took his shot.
The goal nevertheless spurred Sivas into action and Rıza Çalımbay´s lads got the equalizer in the 16th when midfielder Kıvanç Karakaş chested a long ball from defender Ziya Erdal, before whacking a cracker of a shot with the right foot past Fener keeper Volkan Demirel.
Czech Republic center back Jan Rajnoch put Sivasspor 2-1 ahead in the 43rd when he slotted in a rebound from Volkan after a corner taken by dead ball specialist Erman Kılıç. And so the two teams went to their dressing rooms with Sivasspor in the lead.
After the break
Both teams played offensively after the interval and the turning point came in the 64th when Sivasspor´s Bolivia forward Ricardo Pedriel Suarez was unable to put the ball into a wide open net. Simply put, he shot wide from some two meters.
If you can´t score in football you´ll concede, it is that simple. So after the incredible Sivas miss, Fenerbahçe took over the initiative and scored two quick goals in a matter of three minutes.
Alex hit a powerful shot from some 25 meters into the back of the net in the 65th for Fener´s equalizer and the clean-shaven Brazilian was on target two minutes later (67th) to reconnect a pass from Senegal striker Moussa Sow past Nihat to make it 3-2.
Emre, who opened the scoring, sealed the deal in the 73rd when he scored after receiving a perfect pass from late substitute Özgür Çek.
“This is a day every Fenerbahçe supporter should be proud of,” coach Kocaman said as he heaped praise on the female supporters. “The wholehearted support they gave us from the stands was indescribable. This would not have changed no matter what the result, and I thank them all,” he added.
Todays Zaman.
Note : Although I am a Galatasaray Fan, it was nice to see Fb women supporters´s excitement and supporting their team like there is no tomorrow..) I think they are better supporters than men supporters..)
