Besiktas

Besiktas president Fikret Orman has dismissed reports Loris Karius could return to Liverpool from his loan prematurely, telling reporters he wants to sign the German to a permanent deal.

Speaking to Harberle (h/t Sky Sports), Orman dismissed the speculation completely: "Karius is an excellent keeper; God willing, we will sign him on a permanent transfer. These stories are complete nonsense. Give Karius some time is all I'm saying. Karius has a lot of work to do but give him time."

The 25-year-old joined Besiktas on a two-year loan deal in the summer and is not expected to return to Anfield.

He's had a poor start to his career in Turkey, however, leading to speculation Besiktas could cut the loan short. Last month his agent shot down the rumours, per Fotomac (h/t the Mirror's Alex Smith).

The former Mainz man has kept just one clean sheet in eight league starts for Besiktas so far and hasn't fared better in the Europa League. In his last outing in that competition, Besiktas were embarrassed at home, losing 4-2 to Belgian side Genk.

He was dropped for the return leg, a 1-1 draw in Belgium that kept the Turks in the running for a spot in the next round. Besiktas sit in last place in their group with four points, three behind leaders Genk.

In the Turkish Super Lig Besiktas have lost their last two matches to drop to eighth place, nine points behind leaders Basaksehir.

Liverpool replaced their former starter after his two mistakes in the UEFA Champions League final, spending big on AS Roma stopper Alisson Becker. He has enjoyed a solid start to his Reds career:

https://twitter.com/BrazilStat/status/1061617364398231552

A permanent transfer seems far more likely for Karius than an early return, although Besiktas will be in no rush, given they can call on his services for two full seasons.

Besiktas will reportedly drop on-loan Liverpool goalkeeper Loris Karius for their UEFA Europa League fixture against Genk next Thursday amid suggestions the German cares "more about social media than football."

Karius recently drew criticism for conceding a sloppily deflected goal in Besiktas' 2-0 Europa League defeat at Malmo, and Fotomac (h/t Mirror's Mark Jones) reported manager Senol Gunes will take his player "out of the European firing line."

The 25-year-old infamously committed several mistakes in Liverpool's UEFA Champions League Final defeat to Real Madrid in May. He was then scrutinised for posting a professionally produced video of his holidays six weeks later.

Jones also included comments from former West Germany goalkeeper Uli Stein, who said: "Karius seems to think that it is more important to take photos and share on social media accounts than on the field. He needs two perfect seasons to prove himself again."

However, Emre Sarigul of Turkish-Football.com refuted claims 35-year-old Besiktas captain Tolga Zengin was poised to take the No. 1 jersey:

LATEST - Take rumors that Loris Karius will be dropped for Tolga Zengin with a pinch of salt. The Liverpool loanee looks likely to keep his place in the side going by what we saw from the training sessions. No indication that management is unhappy with the keeper pic.twitter.com/jqOL0yBkDU

— Turkish Football (@Turkish_Futbol1) October 18, 2018

Real defeated Liverpool 3-1 at the Olympic Stadium in Kiev, Ukraine, and Karius gifted the Spaniards the lead after attempting to roll the ball too close to Karim Benzema. He then failed to stop a long-range Gareth Bale shot from flying in, though it's suggested an earlier clash with Real defender Sergio Ramos could have impaired him, per Marca.

Stein had little sympathy for the stopper in what was the biggest game of his Liverpool career, per Sarigul:

I don't think Uli Stein likes Loris Karius much... 😳
In response to Sergio Ramos giving the Liverpool keeper concussion, he said: 'I could only laugh about that, something I've never heard in my life. This action was even worse for me than his mistakes in the final' pic.twitter.com/LtDzGPxFAU

— Turkish Football (@Turkish_Futbol1) October 14, 2018

Karius moved to Istanbul on a two-year loan in the same summer that Liverpool broke the then-world record for a goalkeeper to sign Alisson Becker from AS Roma.

The temporary switch was seen as a chance for a 'keeper who has shown promise to get his confidence back, and Karius himself has remarked upon the need to rebuild, per Anfield HQ:

https://twitter.com/AnfieldHQ/status/1043902999905685505

Reports such as this won't help to that end. Karius has featured in seven games for Besiktas this season but has only kept one clean sheet thus far, and an active social media presence won't deflect attention from his shortcomings.

There are many who continue to insist that the group stages of the Champions League are uncompetitive, pallid viewing. Fuel for those opinions is in short supply this term, with less celebrated names grabbing the tournament bull by the horns. The Black Eagles flying high over Istanbul are the only monochrome element among these rising powers.

Besiktas, Turkish champions for the last two seasons, have reached the Champions League knockout round for the first time after Tuesday night's draw with Porto.

They missed out on the same target last year in awful fashion, kicking off their final group game at Dynamo Kiev with their fate in their hands and subsequently succumbing to a 6-0 reverse. As such, they have gone from perceived big-match bottlers to brilliant on the continental stage in less than a year.

It should always have been this way under the roof of the magnificent Vodafone Park, only opened in April 2016 but already seared on to the landscape of European football.

Built on the site of Inonu, which housed BJK from its 1947 opening until its demolition in 2013, it retains the white-hot atmosphere of its predecessor, as well as that prestigious position neighbouring Dolmabahce Palace and the banks of the Bosphorus.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DsymEF8UIc8

Now, Besiktas are hip; partly because of the club's magnificent arena, partly due to the exciting team led to silverware by veteran coach Senol Gunes.

It's also in part to the club's burgeoning international reach, stoked by social media campaigns such as last summer's famous 'Come to Besiktas' clip, which incorporated new signings such as Pepe and Alvaro Negredo and even tickled Cristiano Ronaldo in one of the Portuguese star's Instagram chats, per Eurosport.  

Today, few but the most partisan viewers of Turkish football would dispute that Besiktas are the best team in the land. The champs trail Galatasaray and Basaksehir in the Super Lig by four points as it stands, having been distracted by their Champions League exploits—more of which later.

It has been a hard road, however, to step out of the shadows of their fanatically followed Istanbul rivals, Galatasaray and Fenerbahce, and doing so looked like a pipe dream just a few years ago.

Some of the foundations of the current success were laid by a recently deposed Premier League boss. Slaven Bilic was confirmed as Besiktas coach on June 26, 2013, the day after UEFA confirmed the club would be excluded from the upcoming season's Europa League, following a match-fixing scandal, per the Guardian.

It wasn't an easy-looking task. Besiktas had last won the SuperLig as recently as 2009, but Bilic's appointment was the seventh change of coach since summer 2010, when Bernd Schuster was given the reins.

Bilic's solely domestic remit was to stabilise a team on a relative shoestring. While champions Galatasaray had Didier Drogba, Wesley Sneijder and Felipe Melo on their payroll, and across the Bosphorus to Asia, Fenerbahce had big earners like Bruno Alves, Raul Meireles and Dirk Kuyt on their books, the new coach was tasked with trimming the wage bill.

"The ban itself wasn't the sole reason for this," beIN Sports journalist and presenter Engin Kehale told Bleacher Report, "but the restrictions to have a financial break-even, supported by the changes in the club's management by the president Fikret Orman triggered the evolution.

"It's quite similar to the strategic plan that Joan Laporta put in practice with Ferran Soriano and Txiki Begiristain in Barcelona—an aggressive cost-cutting programme, followed by an aggressive revenue-generating one."

Orman had been elected president a year earlier, in 2012, and found a culture of waste. In Bilic, he found a coach with the determination to build the team back up, and the personality to inspire fans thrust into a period of change as the team moved out of Inonu as the build began.

"It was love at first sight for Besiktas fans," said Kehale. "Bilic was like a guy from the Besiktas stands who was chosen to lead the team on the pitch. The team reflected Bilic's characteristics—exciting, organised, rebellious." He guided the Black Eagles to successive third-placed finishes.

His sophomore season is often seen as a failure after Besiktas lost the leadership of the table in the final few weeks of the season. But in reality, it was a miracle they came so close, given a nomadic existence away from Inonu taking in spells playing home games at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium as well as at Basaksehir, Konya and Ankara.

Bilic had already began to put in key pieces of Gunes' title winners, including Atiba Hutchinson, Cenk Tosun and Olcay Sahan.

Besiktas had to be strong to get through this transitional period, and they were. Even if the club had been on their uppers financially, they had something to work with.

The fans might have been displaced, but they remained a central part of the Istanbul football community. The club's fanatical Carsi supporter group had a key role in involving football fans—and not just Besiktas ones—in the Gezi Park protests of 2013. "Pepper spray is our perfume," one member told Der Spiegel's Ozlem Gezer and Maximilian Popp at the time.

That passion has been something to build on, and Orman's administration has done just that. Now, the Champions League has moved into the priority position as the club aims to grow.

"The plan is clear," Kehale said. "Becoming a global brand. That's why Besiktas made a trip to China this summer to play a friendly against Schalke. The idea is to build a fanbase outside of Turkey. To convey the global message to fans all over the world, the Champions League is crucial."

An attractive on-field persona is key in that, too, and Gunes has built on Bilic's foundation to take Besiktas to the next level. He has created something not just to win, but to entertain.

The current team are one very much in Turkey's modern, post-Fatih Terim tradition, made to attack. Gunes has rehabilitated top-level players whose careers had stalled, including Mario Gomez and now Ryan Babel, to add to Ricardo Quaresma, Oguzhan Ozyakup and Adriano.

"You'd think it (with so many stars) was a hard group to work with," underlined Kehale, "but not for Gunes."

The 65-year-old, who took Turkey to the 2002 World Cup semi-final, and his group deserve huge credit. That relatively recent banishment from Europe means those fans are cherishing these moments—and thanking their lucky stars that Orman used that year away to accelerate the process of lasting change.

"If you have the right plan and the right people to implement that plan," suggested Kehale, "you build something for the future, rather than a one-shot title race. This seems to be the biggest step that Besiktas has taken, and that Fenerbahce and Galatasaray haven't."

Those steps are quickly turning into giant strides in the shadow of Dolmabahce.

Germany international Mario Gomez has announced he will not be returning to Besiktas following the failed military coup and ongoing political situation in Turkey.

The 31-year-old confirmed the news via his Facebook page on Wednesday, thanking the fans for the great reception he had in Turkey and acknowledging it was a "difficult decision:"

Gomez moved to Besiktas on loan from Fiorentina at the start of the 2015-16 campaign and rediscovered his best form after a difficult spell in Italy. He played a crucial role in Besiktas' run to the title and earned a spot in Germany's UEFA Euro 2016 squad as a result.

Along the way, he finished as the top scorer of the Turkish league, putting together some impressive statistics, per OptaCan:

1 - Check out @Mario_Gomez's performance for @Besiktas in Super Lig's 2015-16 season. Farewell. pic.twitter.com/s36KdFgKvM

— OptaCan (@OptaCan) July 20, 2016

DW Sports' Jonathan Harding wondered what's next for the veteran:

https://twitter.com/JonBloggs66/status/755805700870242304

Gomez showed he's still a valuable attacking option during the 2015-16 campaign and Euro 2016, and in all likelihood, there will be a number of clubs interested in his services. He's not expected to stay at Fiorentina, where he never truly fit in and was hampered by injuries.

For Besiktas, the loss of Gomez is a major blow, as the German played an instrumental role in the club's first league title in seven years. It also might set a precedent for other foreign stars to leave Turkish clubs and escape the ongoing turmoil.

Turkey has been in a state of unrest since a failed military coup on Saturday, July 16, which led to the deaths of over 300 people. 

As Leicester City manager Claudio Ranieri famously said, “dilly ding, dilly dong” (as per the Mirror). If their Premier League title win is news that has gripped the globe, then it is their imminent appearance in the group stages of the UEFA Champions League that will really make a few people pinch themselves.

Qualification for Europe’s club-class lounge really does deserve the Italian coach’s flamboyant peal of recognition.

The Foxes deserve to dream of how they might trouble the continent’s good and great, rather than worrying for now if they might be stretched in a similarly uncomfortable way to Montpellier, who beat Paris Saint-Germain to the Ligue 1 title in 2012 and struggled to manage an all-too-predictable hangover in the following campaign.

Taking into account the financial gulf between the Premier League side and Louis Nicollin’s club, Ranieri and company should be better placed to bridge the gap.

Leicester, though, are not alone in presenting a fresh and interesting challenge to Champions League regulars. Here, we look at a few others who could trouble the established order.

Villarreal

They may have continued their miserable record in the semi-finals of European competition with their UEFA Europa League defeat to Liverpool (played four, lost four), but Villarreal’s overall season has been nothing less than a resounding triumph.

Less than three years ago, the Yellow Submarine needed the play-offs to scrape their way back into the top flight. Now, they’re limbering up for another brace of games that will give them the opportunity to take part in the Champions League group stage.

Their coach Marcelino has propelled them every step of the way, and deserves an enormous portion of the credit. Coming to the club off the back of a miserable spell at Sevilla, the 50-year-old’s career has been reborn at El Madrigal. His side are nowhere near as attractive as Manuel Pellegrini’s vintage, but they are solid. With one game to go in La Liga, only Atletico Madrid and Barcelona have conceded less goals.

That back line—anchored by Mateo Musacchio and the experienced Victor Ruiz, and shielded by captain Bruno Soriano—will again be the bedrock, but the impressive understanding between strike pair Roberto Soldado and Cedric Bakumbu should enable them to get at opponents, too.

Lyon

Exploits come in various shapes and sizes, and Olympique Lyonnais’ Parc OL home was witness to the completion of one on Saturday night. Lyon’s 6-1 obliteration of Monaco, in what was effectively a play-off for second place, sealed direct qualification for the group stage barring a mathematical miracle.

Bruno Genesio’s side had trailed Monaco—Ranieri’s former team, of course—by 10 points in late February, but he turned the tables on the Principality club courtesy of an enviable attacking arsenal. Alexandre Lacazette, who led the way against Monaco with a hat-trick, is the most celebrated, but Maxwell Cornet, the improving Sergi Darder and Rachid Ghezzal have all played significant parts. So much so that the injured Nabil Fekir and the marginalised Mathieu Valbuena have barely been missed in 2016.

Much depends on whether Lacazette stays, but an extra year of experience for youngsters like Cornet, Darder, Ghezzal and Fekir should serve Genesio well. After a limp return to the Champions League in 2015, OL should be better equipped this time.

Besiktas

If ever there was a moment for Besiktas to show the sort of mettle needed to be champions, then it was on Sunday, away to wounded, outgoing title-holders Galatasaray in the Istanbul derby. That they held their nerve to close out a narrow 1-0 win spoke volumes for a growing stature. Following Fenerbahce’s Monday night loss at Istanbul Basaksehir, one point from Besiktas’ remaining two games will be good enough for a first title since 2009.

The ability to coolly negotiate pressure is one of the hallmarks of Senol Gunes, their experienced coach, but the Black Eagles’ revival really began under Slaven Bilic, who moulded them back into a competitive force.

It was the now-West Ham boss who brought in the relatively unheralded quality of Gokhan Tore and Jose Sosa, team cornerstones who now complement the goalscoring know-how of Mario Gomez. The Germany international has 25 Super Lig goals this season.

Besiktas’ strides on the pitch have been matched by their progress off it. Following their European ban in 2013 (as reported here by the Independent) the club cut costs and regrouped, and last month moved into the stunning Vodafone Arena, built on the site of the old Inonu stadium, overlooking the Bosphorus. If they get there, it will be one of the Champions League’s most impressive venues, and few will relish visiting.

Sporting Clube de Portugal

Jorge Jesus’ move across Lisbon from Benfica to rivals Sporting was the biggest bombshell of last (or pretty much any) summer in Portuguese football. The charismatic coach has accelerated the renewal of the Alvalade club into a major player and even if they look like just missing out on the title to his old club with one game left, they are thriving again.

Exquisite! Former @FulhamFC star @bryanruizcr volleys home a goal of the season contender for @SportingCP_en. https://t.co/ce556cNLLR

— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) May 7, 2016

His tactical approach has remained pretty much the same, with bright, attacking football the name of the game. Sporting are great to watch, and talented homegrown players including Rui Patricio and Adrien Silva are combining well with more experienced players given second chances, including Bryan Ruiz and Bruno Cesar.

Jesus has prioritised the league ahead of Europe in the past and even more than Lyon, Sporting are at risk of being depleted in the summer transfer window, with midfielder William Carvalho and top scorer Islam Slimani among those widely coveted.

Yet the coach’s willingness to promote gifted youngsters like Gelson Martins and Ruben Semedo means that they could bring freshness and vigour to the competition, following on from Benfica’s example this year.

Rostov

No list of Champions League dark horses to compare with the Premier League champs would be complete without the team we’ve come to know as "the Russian Leicester." The recent similarities are clear, with Rostov’s miserly defence the league’s best. Before the surprise recent loss at lowly Mordovia Saransk, Rostov had gone eight games without conceding a goal.

There is a clear contrast, however, between the Russian Premier League challengers and the Foxes on a coaching level. If Ranieri has just broken a top-flight title duck, then Rostov’s Kurban Berdyev has seen it all before, having guided Rubin Kazan to unlikely back-to-back triumphs in 2008 and 2009.

A couple of Rubin’s key men have reunited with Berdyev to anchor his new side, notably defender Cesar Navas and midfield stalwart Christian Noboa. If Rostov can make it to the Champions League, either directly by winning the title ahead of CSKA Moscow or via the qualifiers, the experience of that trio will mean they should be approached with caution. All three were involved when Rubin beat holders Barcelona at the Camp Nou in October 2009.

Besiktas have completed the signing of Fiorentina forward Mario Gomez on a season-long loan.

The club’s official website confirmed the deal, noting the Turkish side have the option to complete a permanent switch for the striker come the end of the loan.

It means the Germany international is likely to end his stay with La Viola, having joined the Serie A side from Bayern Munich back in 2013.

As we can see here courtesy of OptaCan, the 30-year-old is still one of the most lethal finishers anywhere in European football:

4 - Only 3 players had a better conversion rate than Mario Gomez in the top 5 Euro leagues since 2009-10. Clinical pic.twitter.com/4DAXUyRttZ

— OptaCan (@OptaCan) July 29, 2015

According to soccerway.com, the German only made 29 league appearances in two seasons for Fiorentina, as injuries conspired against him. Gomez only scored seven goals as a result, making for a frustrating couple of seasons in Florence.

The move to Besiktas poses an intriguing opportunity to recapture the kind of form that made him one of the most consistent goalscorers in Europe.

The division is less strenuous than the Italian top flight and while it is growing in stature—as is evident by the likes of Wesley Sneijder and Robin van Persie joining in recent seasons—in terms of quality, it doesn’t measure up to most prestigious leagues on the continent.

Nonetheless, Bleacher Report’s Matteo Bonetti is unsure about what Gomez can offer after his injury problems:

https://twitter.com/TheCalcioGuy/status/620220893411811328

Ultimately, much will depend on the service he gets from his Besiktas team-mates. Gomez has always been a player who needs a supply line to be at his very best. If the incisive midfield talents at the Ataturk Stadium can find him regularly in dangerous areas, the goals will flow.

For the Istanbul club, getting Gomez on board is a major coup. At 30 years old he still has plenty to give, and provided the problems with fitness abate and the service to him is consistent, the German will find goals easy to come by in the Turkish Super Lig.

Demba Ba has joined Turkish club Besiktas from Chelsea after a transfer agreement was reached as the Blues look to alleviate a striker logjam that hasn't been productive.   

The Sun on Twitter passed along word of the deal:

The BBC's Oluwashina Okeleji provided a look at Ba's reveal: 

Squawka Football on Twitter reveals what number Ba will wear next season: 

Ba joined Chelsea last January as the club was looking to bolster attacking options behind Fernando Torres. After successful stints with West Ham United and Newcastle, he seemed like an option that would finally provide the Blues with some stability.

The Senegal international started well, scoring two goals in his debut match. He continued to showcase good form during the early stages of his Blues career, but eventually, he faded and once again left the side with a void atop the formation.

Chelsea even brought in veteran Samuel Eto'o in an attempt to catch lightning in a bottle. His success was also relatively limited.

Since there was depth but a lack of goalscoring from the forward group, the move doesn't come as a major surprise. Ba wasn't able to maintain the early scoring pace he set, and heading to a club where he is likely to find more playing time should help him rediscover top form.

He was linked to Arsenal back in December but said at the time there was nothing going on with the Gunners, noting that things were OK for him, according to Kevin Shield of The Sun (subscription required):

People talk a lot about me joining Arsenal but there has never been an approach from them. There is nothing going on in this regard. Things are OK for me at the moment. It's working as the situation is turning around for me bit by bit.

Then in May, George Scott of the Daily Star provided comments from Ba, who was convinced he was staying at Stamford Bridge for another season:

Jose Mourinho has asked me to stay at Chelsea next season. He assured me that my situation would change.

I see this as my reward from God. I weighed up the pros and cons, and think that I will stay put to see what happens.

Clearly something changed over the past couple months to alter that outlook for both Mourinho and Ba. Only time will tell if it's for the better as the sides go their separate ways.

The 29-year-old striker combines good pace and a nice finishing touch with a willingness to play physical in order to open space for himself in the final third. It worked well with West Ham and Newcastle, but he couldn't match that success with Chelsea.

It wouldn't be a shock to see Ba return to his previous scoring levels with his new club. For whatever reason, Chelsea just haven't had much luck with their strikers over the past few seasons. It's a trend they hope will soon change.

The Blues have been able to remain in the Premier League title hunt because of tremendous play in the midfield and solid defending. If they are able to find a more consistent striker, or simply get better play from those still on the roster, they will be in great shape.

Ba is on the move because it turned out he wasn't the answer.

Jermaine Jones is on the move, the star announced.

Turkish-Football.com was first to report he is going on loan to Besiktas from Schalke for the rest of the season:

Beşiktaş have signed US international Jermaine Jones on loan from Schalke until the end of the season.

Jones is expected to arrive in Turkey tomorrow to complete his move.

The 32-year-old didn't travel to Schalke's January training camp in Doha and is free to speak to clubs this month, with his contract set to expire at the end of the season.

Besiktas International snapped a photo of Jones in Istanbul:

It's likely that the 32-year-old midfielder made this move with a view toward the 2014 World Cup.

While not on the same level as Landon Donovan, Clint Dempsey or Michael Bradley, he has become a fixture for the United States national team. Some supporters have criticized him for his penchant for rash tackles and needless yellow cards.

Over time, though, his defensive contributions have often been vital, and he's become a nice foil for Bradley. Jones can sit in front of the back four, allowing Bradley to make more runs around the pitch.

As much success as he's had with the United States, though, his place in the squad isn't guaranteed.

At Schalke, Jones became a bit of a fringe figure, appearing 14 times in the club's 18 Bundesliga matches. More importantly, only nine of those appearances have been starts.

As Jason Davis of the North American Soccer Network pointed out, moving to Turkey is the chance at regular first-team football in a respected European league:

Jurgen Klinsmann has no shortage of midfielders from which to choose, so Jones likely had no shot at getting a starting spot in Brazil if he had stayed at Schalke for the rest of the season.

At his age, this could be the last time he features at a World Cup, so you can understand that he'd want to do whatever it takes to be on that plane for Brazil.

Follow me on Twitter @JosephZucker.

A move to Turkey for the young American?

Sources close to Jozy Altidore have told Goal.comUSA that the 20-year-old USA international and striker for Spanish side Villareal will be joining 13-time Turkish league Champions Besiktas in the very near future.

Altidore is seen as one of the most promising star's of the growing number of young American's to come to the forefront of world football in the last two years. Altidore spent last season on loan to premier league side Hull City in which he had trouble finding the back of the net. The English side was relegated to the second division and Altidore was sent back to Spain.

Without being able to solidify a spot in the starting line-up for Villareal, Jozy has been the target of rumored transfers this summer having already been linked with Dutch club AJAX.

It now seems that the 20-year-old is headed to Turkey in a long term capacity with the rumored deal being between four and six years in length. This should help him find regular first team football with a club since arriving to Europe in the summer of 2008.

Altidore started all four games for the USA at this past summer's World Cup and has impressed so far with the national team but his inability to find the back of the net thus far for European clubs has hindered his starting chances.

If this deal does go through, he will be getting the chance to play in the Europa League this season alongside one of the greatest passers of our generation in Guti who recently signed from Real Madrid, and also one of the most creative talents but "big club" misfit in Portuguese forward Ricardo Quaresma who has failed to impress outside of the Portuguese league with stints at Barcelona, Chelsea, and Inter Milan respectively but definitely posses the ability to make things happen.