Besiktas vs Crystal Palace Preview

Besiktas host Crystal Palace at Vodafone Park on Thursday night with the Turkish side fourth in the Europa League table and Palace down in 15th. Besiktas have won both league phase games, 4-1 at home against Marseille and 3-2 away at Hoffenheim, which gives them six points and a goal difference of +4. Palace are on three points after a 3-2 defeat away at Lyon on 15 October, and they lost 5-0 away at Brighton in the Premier League on Sunday. Besiktas beat Kocaelispor 2-1 at home in the Super Lig on 11 October. A win for Palace would take them level with Besiktas on points. Kick-off in Istanbul is at 8pm UK time.

Besiktas have won four of their last five, scoring 14 goals and conceding seven. The latest was a 3-2 win away at Hoffenheim in the Europa League on 15 October. Before that, Kocaelispor were beaten 2-1 at Vodafone Park on 11 October, and Amedspor won 3-2 against Besiktas in the league on 20 September, the one defeat. Marseille were beaten 4-1 at home on 17 September, and Erzurumspor 3-0 at home on 11 September, the only clean sheet of the run. All three of their home games in the sample were wins, with nine goals scored and two conceded, while away from home they won once and lost once. Besiktas have conceded in four of the five games.

Crystal Palace have won one, drawn one and lost three of their last five, scoring five goals and conceding 11. Sunday’s 5-0 defeat away at Brighton in the Premier League is the latest and the heaviest result of the run, and a game in which Palace failed to score. Before that, Lyon won 3-2 against Palace in the Europa League on 15 October, and Palace beat Nottingham Forest 3-1 at home on 11 October, the only win of the five. Further back, Bristol City won 2-0 at Palace in a friendly on 3 October, and Leeds held them to a goalless draw on 20 September. Palace failed to score in three of the five games, and they have conceded in four of them.

There is no previous meeting between Besiktas and Crystal Palace on record, so both clubs sit on zero wins, zero draws and zero defeats against each other. With nothing to lean on, the home and away split in recent form is the best guide. Besiktas won all three of their home games in the sample, and the Vodafone Park crowd will expect that run to continue. Palace took one win and one defeat from their two home matches and one point from their only away league game in the run, the 0-0 at Leeds.

Besiktas are fourth in the league phase standings on six points with a goal difference of +4, and Crystal Palace are 15th on three points with +3. A win would take Palace to six points, though their position would depend on results elsewhere on matchday three.

In Turkey, the match is live on TRT 1, with Digiturk Play and tabii streaming. UK viewers can watch on TNT Sports 2, with HBO Max streaming, while in the USA it’s on Paramount+ and DAZN USA. In Ireland, TNT Sports 2 and HBO Max carry the game.

Possible Lineups

Besiktas — Form

Crystal Palace — Form

Head to Head

Where to Watch

Table

Europa League Standings