Football Season Guide

With coach Abdullah Avci in charge, Besiktas were unable to kick off the last season well as he really struggled to make the team understand his mentality. The fans became hopeful when they recorded a 6-game winning league run, but then a poor run caused the coach's demise. Besides that, they faced an early exit from the cup and did nothing in the EL’s group stage. In order to replace him, the board appointed coach Sergen Yalcin, a legendary former player of the Black Eagles. They sometimes struggled in his charge, but managed to do greatly and, at the end of the season, they got their reward. Following Trabzon’s European ban, they competed in the CL qualifiying round which was a great opportunity considering the club’s financial needs, but they offered a poor performance against PAOK. In the summer they added very useful players like Mensah, N’Sakala and Welinton, but it is not enough yet as they need more arrivals due to the departures of Burak Yilmaz, Elneny, Boateng, Gokhan. The club president said that they need new resources to bring someone in. At this point, they may have to sell Ljajic or Vida. If they cannot do it, the coach will have to use some loan returnees like Mirin, Hasic, Larin. The financial aspect will be very important for Besiktas in the upcoming years. So they need to compete in the next season’s CL group stage somehow, if they cannot win the title. They will have to dedicate all their energies to achieve such result.