Be?ikta? beats Fenerbahçe, taking league lead

Be?ikta? ended the club?s Istanbul derby jinx and beat Fenerbahçe 3-2 on Sept. 27 to climb atop Spor Toto Super League standings.

Mario Gomez scored twice for the Black Eagles with Simon Kjaer netting an own goal, while Fenerbahçe?s Dutch star Robin van Persie again came off the bench to score, but his fourth goal for the club and an own goal by Dusko Tosic were not enough for the visiting side at Istanbul?s Olympic Stadium.

Be?ikta? has lost six of the eight derbies played in the past two years, while drawing the other two, under coach Slaven Bilic, who flew to the Premier League?s West Ham United this summer to become a giant killer there. Sept. 27?s victory was the first derby win for the club since March 3, 2013. It also gave Be?ikta?, which has 13 points out of six games, the top spot in the league standings, ahead of Fenerbahçe who also has 13 points.

?It was a difficult match, but we beat the leader and became the new leader,? Be?ikta? coach ?enol Güne? said after the game. ?If we had lost, Fenerbahçe would have gained an advantage, but now we are level. A close race is on for the league title,? the former Turkey national team coach added, also expressing his gratitude to his players for their hard work and the fans ?for their extraordinary support.?

Fenerbahçe?s Portuguese coach Vitor Pereira, who was severely criticized for his decision to start Fernandao on the offensive line instead of van Persie, defended his decision.

?I have very good players and a qualified squad,? he said at a post-match press conference. ?I was happy with all the players who went on the field tonight. We have a lot of coming games, and this is the way we try to manage the squad,? he said.

Pereira added that he was ?proud? of his...