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Osimhen nets brace as Galatasaray hold on against Fenerbahce for derby win

Osimhen celebrates goal
Osimhen celebrates goalHAKAN AKGUN / ANADOLU / ANADOLU VIA AFP

Victor Osimhen’s brace earned Galatasaray a 2-1 victory over Fenerbahce, marking the Aslanlar’s fifth consecutive Intercontinental Derby in the Turkish Super Lig without a defeat.

Abdulkerim Bardakci and Romelu Lukaku sparked the game’s first fiery encounter within 15 seconds, and the temperature didn’t drop at all, so it was no surprise the first shot came from a free-kick - even if Roland Sallai’s effort was headed wide by the Sari Kanaryalar wall.

The hosts initially remained on top amid the chaos, with Osimhen heading wide before Baris Yilmaz elegantly glided his way into a shooting position twice but was denied by Ederson on both occasions. 

Gala still had scares of their own, though, as Oguz Aydin’s free-kick had Ugurcan Cakir scrambling before eventually clearing the crossbar, and Davinson Sanchez turned N’Golo Kante’s cross onto his own post.

Undeterred, they gave Rams Park reason to erupt just before the half-hour mark, when Osimhen collected Yilmaz’s pass and emphatically smashed his shot into the bottom corner. 

Player of the match
Player of the matchFlashscore

Osimhen showed his instincts in front of goal again in search of a second, but a flick sailed wide, and Ederson tipped a first-time attempt past the post.

Those instincts paid off again in the 44th minute, as Osimhen glanced Sanchez’s audacious attempt into the bottom corner.

Okan Buruk’s men continued to push forward after the restart, as Skriniar deflected Alexey Batrakov’s shot wide following a lung-bursting run, while Osimhen and Ismail Jakobs both headed against the post.

Cakir rushed out to deny Lukaku at the other end between those headers, but the goalkeeper’s touch was futile when Irfan Kahveci cushioned the ball into the air and unleashed a spectacular bicycle kick in the 62nd minute.

Lucas Torreira fired wastefully off target, then turned the ball over from Sanchez’s latest ambitious effort, before Rafael Leao’s curling strike was tipped wide by Ederson as the hosts tried to restore their buffer.

Osimhen and Leao then struck wide, while Mario Lemina stopped Skriniar’s attempt on the line and Kerim Akturkoglu blazed a poor free-kick over in the final stages.

Ultimately, though, Galatasaray recorded their fourth win in their last five matches across all competitions to reclaim top spot in the Turkish Super Lig. They will also take extra satisfaction from leaving Fenerbahce fifth in the league with just one win from their last four.

Flashscore Man of the Match: Victor Osimhen (Galatasaray)

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