Two sole football teams to have managed to win the Turkish title outside of Istanbul, Bursaspor and Trabzonspor, meet for a historic Super Cup on Saturday.
Turkcell Super League champion Bursaspor, who managed to take the trophy out of Istanbul 26 years after the total domination of Fenerbahçe, Galatasaray and Beşiktaş, will take on Trabzonspor, the first team out of the big three to win the championship.
That is the first time in the Super Cup, which replaced the Presidential Cup five years ago, that two Anatolian sides meet. In the Presidential Cup, which used the same system of staging a game between the league and cup winners, Trabzonspor had been one of the most successful, lifting the trophy no fewer than seven times.
Bursaspor played in the Presidential Cup only once, when it lost to Beşiktaş 2-1 in 1986.
The Crocs look to win the title for the first time, capping what has been an illustrious year for them after winning their first Turkish title.
“We want to pick up where we left off last season,” said Bursaspor coach Ertuğrul Sağlam. “Just like we achieved a first-time victory in the league, we want to achieve another win to claim another cup for the first time.”
“We know that a Super Cup victory will contribute to us in a great deal,” added Sağlam. “We want to start the 2010-2011 campaign with a trophy.”
Sağlam also said that it was of great importance to play the Super Cup match with Trabzonspor.
“It is very nice that two storied Anatolian clubs get to play for the Super Cup,” he explained. “I believe that two clubs having friendly ties will show great respect and fair play attitude to each other both before, during and after the game.”
Sağlam urged Bursaspor fans, who are known to be among one of the most passionate supporter groups in Turkish football, to show more interest in the match at Istanbul’s Atatürk Olympic Stadium.
“We have acknowledged that Trabzonspor fans are outselling our fans in ticket purchases,” said the former Beşiktaş and Samsunspor player. “We want our fans to come to the Olympic Stadium not to leave us alone. To feel their support means a lot to us.”
On the other end, although it has won the now-defunct Presidential Cup, Trabzonspor believes that the Super Cup is the missing piece in the club’s decorated museum.
Trabzonspor is gunning to take the trophy for the first time after 1995. Striker Umut Bulut said that the Black Sea Storm has been working all along for this match.
“We want that trophy,” said the forward. “We had this cup in our minds all along the summer when we were working.”
The match on Saturday kicks off at 8:30 p.m.
Meanwhile, Trabzonspor was drawn on Friday to play against Liverpool in what looks like the hardest tie for all four Turkish teams hoping to make their way to the Europa League.
The Black Sea Storm was drawn to play the Reds in Liverpool on Aug. 19, while the return match in Trabzon is on Aug. 26.
Trabzonspor has been tied with Liverpool only once before in the 1976-1977 season. The Black Sea side got a famous 1-0 victory in the first match in Turkey, while a Liverpool side, who was in its prime won the tie with a 3-0 in England.
Fenerbahçe, who was relegated to the second-tier competition after being eliminated by Young Boys in the Champions League qualifiers, was drawn to play Greek side PAOK in what is expected to be a heated match, due to long-known rivalry between two countries.
Galatasaray will take on Karpaty of Ukraine and Beşiktaş will meet Finland side HJK Helsinki in rather more comfortable ties.
