By Richard Beale ……
Midway through the second half Esentepe were hit by a 10 minute hurricane which left irreparable damage and blew away any hope of them salvaging a point.
The storm was caused by Gençlik Güçü African players Debola, Prince Boateng and Ocran who through all of the match toyed with Esentepe like a cat would with a mouse. Come the 65th minute the cat got bored with the mouse and in a 10 minute spell they went in for the kill and tore Esentepe’s defence apart.
Result : GENÇLİK GÜÇÜ TSK 4 ESENTEPE KKSK O
Saturday September 29, 2018 : K-Pet Super League : Şht Hüseyin Ruso Stadium
On a very warm afternoon this match in Lefkoşa attracted a good crowd with quite a few making the journey from Esentepe.
Esentepe gave a first start to new signing Tidiane Sane a Senegalese midfield player signed on Thursday. The match was also broadcast live on the local BRT television station.
Gençlik Gücü TSK v Esentepe KKSK
Esentepe had a great chance to take the lead in the 10th minute when a Edis cross from the left found Ahmet Karal in a great position but the winger with the goal at his mercy headed wide.
Esentepe supporters were out of their seats when a shot appeared to strike Güçü defender’s hand but their appeal for a penalty was ignored by referee Hakan.
A mistake by Esentepe defender Uğurcan let in G.Güçü on the right where a Prince Boateng cross was volleyed wide by Ocran from a good position.
Then the two Africans combined again this time Esentepe goalkeeper Ali was equal to Prince Boateng’s effort.
G. Gücü were now exerting tremendous pressure on the Esentepe goal, Özgür Ongun so often a thorn in the side of Esentepe bore down on goal, but keeper Ali bravely dived at the striker’s feet.
Esentepe replied in the 33rd minute with an Edis free kick that seemed to have clipped the bar before being safely “bagged” by G.Güçü keeper Mustafa.
Esentepe made a tactical substitution in the 38th minute withdrawing striker Hürkan and bringing on Kaan.
Esentepe would be happy with their first half efforts, with central defender Zady Moses looking very strong and secure. HALF TIME SCORE : 0-0.
The opening exchanges of the second half were very scrappy with free kicks and players needing treatment for injuries.
Özgür Ongun should have put G. Gücü ahead in the 63rd minute put through by Debola the prolific striker shot high over the bar.
The storm clouds were gathering though with a tiring Esentepe defence, they would soon be hit by an unstoppable ‘African” storm.
65 mins – Prince Boateng outstripped Mahmut on the right, crossed to Özgür whose shot was blocked but DEBOLA DANIEL OGIUNSEYE following up smashed the ball home. 1-0
72 mins – Esentepe Moses did well to take the ball off Prince Boateng but DEBOLA pounced and took the ball off him, before beating Ali at his near post and registering his second goal. 2-0
74 mins – Özgür surprisingly outstripped teenager Yakup on the left before crossing where PRINCE BOATENG nipped in front of Şahin to score, 3-0
The game was effectively over and many of the Esentepe supporters had seen enough and were making their way home.
They missed G.Gücü last goal scored inevitably by ÖZGÜR ONGUN who kept up his incredible scoring record against Esentepe in the 78th minute after being put through by Ocran. 4-0.
Esentepe were now a bedraggled bunch, completely lost their shape and just praying for the final whistle. FULL TIME SCORE : 4-0.
SUMMING UP : I am not going to get to downhearted we know it will take something special for Esentepe to retain their Super League status this season. It’s early days yet we must expect results like this, hopefully only occasionally. The Super League is a giant step up both in skill and pace.
For 60 minutes we were in the game, and I was hoping that we could hold on and snatch a valuable away point.
G. Gücü African players were the difference between the two sides wingers Ocran and Prince Boateng having the beating of the Esentepe full backs, with “man of the match” DEBOLA being deadly in front of goal.
As I said last week I cannot see where a goal is coming from for Esentepe, we simply haven’t the strikers. Odi ran his socks off but with no support, we cannot retain the ball in our opponents half long enough to take pressure off our defence, which sooner or later will crack.
Debutant Tidiane Sane was substituted in the 60th minute, he has played little football due to injury over the last two seasons he will need time to settle in. ZADY MOSES on his first half performance was Esentepe best player.
Video highlights of the Gençlik Güçü TSK v Esentepe KKSK football match by Graham Procter-Brown.
