OKAN BURUK AND HIS STUDENTS WANT TO CONTINUE WHERE THEY LEFT OFF
The yellow-red team will try to improve on its good performance in the UEFA Champions League last season.
Galatasaray, which faced Eintracht Frankfurt, Liverpool, Bodo/Glimt, Ajax, Union Saint-Gilloise, Monaco, Atletico Madrid and Manchester City in the league stage of the "Giants League" last season, finished in the 20th place with 10 points.
"Cimbom", which eliminated Italy's Juventus team in the last 16 round play-offs, advanced to the last 16 rounds. The yellow-red team, which was eliminated by Liverpool here, left behind a successful tournament for itself.
Coach Okan Buruk and his students will fight to take this success one step further this season.
GOOD START TO THE SEASON
Galatasaray was undefeated in 4 official matches in the 2026-27 season.
The yellow-red team started the Trendyol Super League, where they have been champions for the last 4 seasons, with a draw against Arca Çorum FK at home. Galatasaray caught a winning streak by winning the matches against Erzurumspor FK, Göztepe and Başakşehir.
Although "Cimbom" got what it wanted in terms of scores in the 4 matches it played, it attracted attention with its defensive problems. Galatasaray, which conceded goals especially from set pieces, conceded two goals each in 3 of the 4 league matches.
SPORTING, ONE OF LAST SEASON'S QUARTER FINALISTS
Sporting, one of the well-established clubs of Portuguese football, succeeded in reaching the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League last season.
Having clinched the championship in the 2024-25 season in the Portuguese League, Sporting directly participated in the 36-team league stage of Europe's number 1 football tournament at the club level. The green-white team, which had 5 wins, 1 draw and 2 defeats in the 8 matches it played, ranked 7th and advanced directly to the last 16 rounds.
Sporting, which made its way to the quarter-finals by eliminating the surprise team of the Champions League, Bodo/Glimt, in this round, was eliminated by the English team Arsenal, which would advance to the final.
Having had a good season in the Champions League, Sporting finished second in the Portuguese League and once again gained the right to directly participate in this tournament.
The Lisbon representative, one of the teams that won the most trophies in Portuguese football, experienced its only championship in the international arena by winning the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup in the 1963-64 season.
THERE ARE IMPORTANT FOOTBALL PLAYERS IN THEIR SQUAD
Sporting has a young squad, but still has important players who have made a name for themselves in world football.
The green-white team's squad, which has an average age of 23.6, includes defenders Gonçalo Inacio, Zeno Debast, Eduardo Quaresma, Maxi Araujo, midfielders Sergi Altimira, Issa Doumbia, Rodrigo Zalazar and attackers Nestory Irankunda, Geny Catamo, Luis Suarez and Fotis Ioannidis.
Sporting, which won 4 of the 5 matches in the Portuguese League this season and drew 1, is a leading scorer with 14 goals. Luis Suarez, who scored 4 goals in the league, Flavio Gonçalves, who scored 3 goals, and Fotis Ioannidis, who scored 2 goals, stand out as the players that Galatasaray defense should pay attention to.
