Rizespor 1 - 1 FT Alanyaspor

Red cards, late sting: drama at Çaykur Didi

Highly Entertaining Futmetrix Score: 67/100. Two dismissals, a one-sided shot count and an 89th-minute punch turned this mid-table meeting into one of those draws that will shape confidence on both sides.

Opening Act: early dismissal, backs to the wall

The tone snapped into focus almost immediately at Çaykur Didi Stadyumu. After just six minutes, G. Papanikolaou’s red card left Rizespor scrambling and cranked the Intensity straight up. Reduced to ten, the hosts abandoned any ideas of front-foot football and retreated into a low block. Alanyaspor controlled possession with 64% of the ball and launched a barrage of efforts, their 20 shots to Rizespor’s four turning the afternoon into a siege. In midfield, Gaius Makouta dictated tempo, recycling endlessly, while Ui-Jo Hwang buzzed across the front line, constantly testing the defensive line. Yet despite the pressure, only two efforts really troubled the keeper, underlining how Rizespor, even a man down, managed to keep just enough Balance to survive the opening storm.

The Pivot: Maestro walks, Mihaila strikes

The game’s real twist arrived just before the break. On 43 minutes, Maestro’s red card dragged Alanyaspor down to ten as well and rewired the whole contest’s Balance. Suddenly Rizespor could edge higher and contest second balls rather than simply endure. After the interval, they pushed sporadically, and in the 62nd minute thought they had their breakthrough, only for Q. Laci’s finish to be scrubbed off by VAR for offside. That moment, cancelling the eruption inside the ground, underlined the Stakes for two sides trying to inch away from the lower half. The introduction of V. Mihaila on the hour proved decisive. Fresh and direct off the bench, he timed his run perfectly in the 80th minute, arriving to meet C. Hojer’s cut-back and steer in a classic super-sub goal that looked like the winner.

Resolution: Mounie’s late blow and table truths

Once ahead, Rizespor instinctively dropped deeper, the early red’s physical and mental toll written across their shape. Even at ten-a-side, Alanyaspor kept the ball crisply, their high pass accuracy and eight corners fuelling sustained pressure. In the 89th minute, substitute fatigue and concentration finally snapped. S. Mounie found the pocket of space he wanted, and when I. Hagi threaded the key pass, the striker drilled home an equaliser that maximised the match’s Upset Factor for the home crowd. For Rizespor, this 1-1 feels like two points spilled after a late "winner" and another lead slipped, leaving them stuck in the lower mid-table pack. For Alanyaspor, rescuing a draw away, under pressure and a man down for an entire half, reinforces their resilience and keeps their steady mid-table trajectory intact.

Mid-table chess on the Black Sea

Skip It Futmetrix Score: 38/100. This may be a mid-table meeting, but it’s a crucial Form check and a chance for both Rizespor and Alanyaspor to pull a direct rival into their slipstream.

The Setup

On 25 January 2026, 10th-placed Alanyaspor travel to 12th-placed Rizespor at Çaykur Didi Stadyumu. Neither side is in the title race, but there’s plenty of quiet jeopardy in this mid-table tussle.

Rizespor sit on 18 points from 17 games, with 20 scored and 24 conceded – a season defined by shaky Balance between attack and defence. Their recent W-L pattern (LWDLL) underlines inconsistency and the need for a home response.

Alanyaspor, two spots higher on 21 points, are the draw specialists of this Süper Lig campaign: four wins, nine draws, four defeats. A WDDDL run in their last five screams stubborn, hard-to-beat, but not ruthless. That profile is exactly why Futmetrix’s Balance metric rates this as a tight, almost pick’em contest.

Individually, the spotlight tilts towards Rizespor’s creative hub Qazim Laci, who arrives in genuine Form: 2 goals and 1 assist in his last 4 matches, with a 7.0 average rating. Around him, attackers like J. Rak-Sakyi and midfield control from Q. Laçi give the hosts a touch of extra quality. For Alanyaspor, M. Elia leads the line, with Y. Özdemir and Maestro knitting together a possession-heavy midfield.

Key Battle

The defining duel pits Rizespor’s string-puller Qazim Laci against Alanyaspor’s penalty-box predator Ui-Jo Hwang. Laci’s line-breaking passes and late runs are Rizespor’s sharpest tool to unpick a compact defence. Hwang, by contrast, thrives on minimal service – clever movement, one-touch finishes, and punishing lapses inside the box. Whoever imposes their game more decisively will tilt the Stakes and likely decide where this careful mid-table contest lands.

Our Prediction

Futmetrix numbers give Rizespor a narrow edge – 42.4% win probability versus 30.1% for Alanyaspor – but the high draw likelihood underlines how finely poised this is. Expect the hosts to start on the front foot, feeding Laci between the lines, while Alanyaspor look to control tempo through midfield and spring Hwang and Elia on transitions.

The script points to long spells of traffic in central areas, few clear chances, and both managers prioritising control over chaos. If one side scores first, the other’s response is more likely measured than gung-ho, dragging the contest back into a cagey rhythm. The most logical outcome: a tight, tactical 1-1 draw, with Laci and Hwang each having a decisive say in their team’s solitary goal.