Football Season Guide

Gaziantep FK

In


Naoulef Khacef (def) Tondela, Max Gradel (att) Sivasspor, Ilker Karakas (att) Genclerbirligi, Alexandru Maxim (mid) Besiktas JK – end of loan, Gunay Guvenc (gk), Papy Djilobodji (def), Mustafa Eskihellac (att) Kasimpasa – end of loan, Lazar Markovic (att) Trabzon – end of loan, Furkan Soyalp (mid) Adana Demir – end of loan, Angelo Sagal (att) Ferencvaros – end of loan, Luka Stankovski (mid) ND Gorica – end of loan, Ertugrul Ersoy (def), Valmir Veliu (att), Mirza Cihan (att) Istanbulspor – end of loan, Arda Kizildag (def) MKE Ankaragucu – end of loan, Omurcan Artan (def), Burak Bozan (gk) Tuzlapor – end of loan, Ulas Zengin (def) Karacabey Bld – end of loan,

Out


Angelo Sagal (sp)(att) free agent.

As known, Gaziantep FK failed to complete the last season because of an earthquake and the Turkish FA hid their right for this season. Following the disaster in February, the club loaned out all their players for the rest of the last season. So, they tried to keep their form at a high level as much as possible. No doubt that it will be very difficult to concentrate especially for foreign players since there are still demolished buildings in the city. This summer, the fans saw only the departure of Sagal who was not a 1st-team material. Except him, coach Erdal Gunes managed to persuade all the other players in the team. On the net, they have a problem as Guvenc is about to leave the team. If he leaves, the coach has Kilicarslan & Bozan who lack experience. So, it is a must to bring a new keeper. The center-back looks acceptable along with Djilobodji, Ersoy, Kizildag and Zengin but defensive flanks are not. They brougt Khacef in but the Algerian left back is not good enough. They also have only Artan at right back. So, they have to bring some good defensive wingers at once. The biggest signing of the team is Gradel so far. He has done a great job with Sivas the last couple of years. The coach is hopeful that Maxim & Eskihellac are ready to have important roles in his offensive plans. Up front, they added Karakas from the 1st division side Genclerbirligi but, of course, is not enough. At least, they need to bring two quality attackers who are good at finishing. Ahead of the new season, it looks like they have some problems in some departments and the coach is worried, if the board can solve them on time or not. The main question is whether the fans are ready to support the team mentally or not.

Target


Survival should be their Top priority. Following a huge shock, it will not be easy to bounce back.