Besiktas travel to Norway on Thursday, where they will take on Bodo/Glimt, in what looks set to be an entertaining affair.
Bodo/Glimt
Glimt are cruising towards another Eliteserien title and with 25 games played, they sit top of the table. As usual, Kjetil Knutsen's team score goals in abundance and they have netted an average of 2.6 per match. Their star man is Amahl Pellegrino, who has been unbelievable over the past few seasons and if it wasn't for his age (33), many teams in the top European leagues would be keeping an eye on him. The winger has contributed to 35 goals this season, with 22 of them being goals and he picked up four assists in the first half of Glimt's 4-3 win over Sanderfjord at the weekend.
However, the Norwegian side have found it difficult in the Europa Conference League this campaign and they are currently bottom of Group D with 1 point. The Glimt faithful are used to seeing goals but only one goal has been scored in their two opening games, which occurred via Club Brugge last time out. Their first match saw them draw 0-0 away to Lugano. Knutsen's side desperately need to get off the mark this week.
Besiktas
The Black Eagles started the season in superb fashion but in recent weeks, they have found it difficult to overcome their opponents. Burak Yilmaz's team have lost three of their last five matches in all competitions, with the main cause being poor defending. Besiktas do not seem to blow teams away in attack, so they rely on their defensive solidity for control at times. Their top scorer is Vincent Aboubakar on four goals in nine Superlig matches.
Besiktas began their quest for European silverware against Club Brugge in Belgium. The score ended 1-1, but the hosts accumulated 3.53 XG in the tie and should have quite easily walked away with three points. Their most recent match saw them suffer a 3-2 defeat to Lugano. An Aboubakar double gave the hosts the lead but Valentin Rosier was sent off on the hour mark. Fast forward to the 80th minute and it seemed that Besiktas would see out an impressive victory given the circumstances. However, they completely fell apart after the first goal went in.
Verdict?
This game should see plenty of action at both ends of the field, but it will be interesting to see how Besiktas adapt to the unfamiliar playing conditions. Arsenal, PSV and Roma have all struggled at the Aspmyra Stadion due to the artificial pitch which gives Glimt a slight advantage.
The final prediction is Bodo/Glimt 2-2 Besiktas.
