Trabzonspor 1 - 0 FT Antalyaspor

Savic Delivers as VAR Drama Crowns Trabzon's Perfect Start

Average Entertainment Futmetrix Score: 40/100. Trabzonspor's flawless campaign continues thanks to Stefan Savic's clinical 38th-minute header and a crucial VAR intervention that denied Felipe Augusto's leveller at the 43-minute mark.

Savic's Set-Piece Mastery Breaks the Deadlock

Three matches into the season, Trabzonspor remain unbeaten—and Savic's towering header in the opening period proved why. The home side's intensity from dead-ball situations paid dividends when the defender rose highest to open the scoring. Antalyaspor, despite matching their hosts in possession (50-50 split), struggled to generate genuine stakes, managing just 0.76 xG across 7 attempts.

VAR's Intervention Shapes the Narrative

The match's intensity reached its apex in the 43rd minute when VAR disallowed Felipe Augusto's goal—a decision that sent shockwaves through the stadium. Trabzonspor unleashed 17 shots (6 on target), while Antalya managed only 7 (4 on target). Goalkeeper heroics proved decisive, with nine combined saves between the two teams. Lautaro Giannetti's introduction as a substitute bolstered Antalya's defensive resolve, though Mustafa Eskihellac's two key passes underscored Trabzon's midfield control.

Title Race Implications

This victory cements Trabzonspor's position at the summit of the title race. Third-placed with 9 points from three games—a perfect record—they've already established a three-point cushion over seventh-placed Antalyaspor (6 points). The home side's 83% pass accuracy and clinical finishing in the final third suggest they possess the quality to sustain this momentum. For Antalya, the balance was nearly restored, but VAR's intervention left them chasing shadows.

Early-season six-pointer in Trabzon

Average Entertainment Futmetrix Score: 53/100. Trabzonspor’s push to stay in the leading pack collides with Antalyaspor’s need to escape the lower half in a match carrying huge early-season Stakes.

The Setup

On 24 August 2025, this Super Lig clash at the stadium arrives with far more weight than a typical Matchday 3 fixture. Both sides sit on six points, level with the top, turning this into a genuine early six-pointer.

Trabzonspor come in looking like a side built for another top-three push: across a 14-game sample they’ve produced nine wins and only one defeat, with a strong Form line of WWDDW. Twenty-five scored and just 12 conceded underline a balanced profile rather than a one-dimensional attacking side.

Antalyaspor, by contrast, have been dragged towards the wrong end of the table. Eight defeats in 14, a goal difference of -11 and a patchy Form run of LDLWL leave them under pressure. Conceding close to two goals per game is a brutal weakness when you walk into one of the league’s most hostile away days.

Futmetrix numbers tilt the Balance towards Trabzonspor, but with the Stakes metric maxed out, the psychological load is heavy on both teams. Add in several players with genuine star quality and you get a fixture with an unusually bright Stars glow for so early in the campaign.

Key Battle

The contest is likely to hinge on how Trabzonspor’s build-up handles Antalyaspor’s transition threat. For the hosts, Arseniy Batagov is central to progressing the ball through the thirds and controlling tempo. For the visitors, Nikola Storm is the headline danger, starting the league with 2 goals in 2 matches and a 7.8 average rating. If Batagov calmly breaks the first press and pins Antalyaspor back, Storm’s chances to attack space in behind shrink dramatically; if he’s rushed and sloppy, Storm will have grass to run into.

Our Prediction

Expect Trabzonspor to boss possession from the start, circulating the ball patiently and probing down the flanks, while Antalyaspor sit in a mid-block and wait to spring Storm into open field. The visitors should carve out one or two dangerous counters, but over 90 minutes the home side’s superior Form, structure and squad depth ought to tell. With the crowd driving them on, Trabzonspor are well placed to turn sustained pressure into goals after the break and take this crunch match Trabzonspor 2-1 Antalyaspor.