Besiktas rises like phoenix with Ciro Immobile, Rafa Silva
In the second leg of the UEFA Europa League playoff round, Besiktas players Rafa Silva, Emirhan Topcu, Milot Rashica, Ernest Muçi, and Ciro Immobile celebrated their goals during the match against Lugano in Istanbul, Türkiye, on Aug. 29, 2024. (AA Photo)
Besiktas faced Lugano in the second leg of the UEFA Europa League playoff round on Thursday.
After a 3-3 draw in the first leg, the Black Eagles secured their spot in the group stage with a decisive 5-1 victory, winning the tie 8-4 on aggregate.
Besiktas‘ Italian star Ciro Immobile shone brightly with two goals, while Portuguese superstar Rafa Silva contributed with a classy goal and a spectacular assist.
Gedson Fernandes and Salih Ucan also found the net, with Fernandes scoring his third goal in the UEFA Europa League play-offs.
Aiming to erase last season’s disappointments
Last season, Besiktas finished 6th in the league with 56 points, trailing champion Galatasaray by 46 points.
However, under the leadership of new president Hasan Arat, the club underwent significant changes and enjoyed a remarkable turnaround, winning the Turkish Cup and now aiming for European success.
Besiktas appointed Dutch football legend Giovanni van Bronckhorst as head coach, making structural changes to the team. After struggling with goal-scoring last season, the club addressed this issue by signing star players Ciro Immobile and Rafa Silva. These transfers have already started to pay off significantly.
Besiktas has made an impressive start to the 2024/2025 season across all competitions. They began the season with a resounding 5-0 victory over reigning Turkish champions Galatasaray, followed by two consecutive league wins. In the Europa League, after a draw in the first leg against Lugano, Besiktas secured a dominant 5-1 win in the second leg, advancing to the group stage.
The team has scored 19 goals and conceded only six in five official matches this season, boasting an average of 3.8 goals per game and remaining unbeaten so far.
Shining stars: Immobile and Silva
Ciro Immobile and Rafa Silva have been the standout performers this season. Italian striker Immobile has made an incredible start, scoring six goals in five official matches for Besiktas. The Golden Shoe winner averages a goal per 66 minutes.
Rafa Silva, a Portuguese star, has also hit the ground running, contributing four goals and three assists in five matches, making a direct contribution to seven goals. Silva is averaging a goal every 108 minutes and a goal contribution every 61 minutes.
Head coach Giovanni van Bronckhorst praised Immobile and Silva’s performances after the Lugano match, stating, “We want to be a team that concedes few goals and scores many. Looking at Rafa’s career at Benfica, you can see how effective he is. Ciro Immobile is also delivering the scoring contribution I expect. I’m pleased with both players’ contributions to the team.”
Given that Besiktas finished last season trailing their rivals by over 40 points, it seems like with Ciro Immobile and Rafa Silva, the Black Eagles are rising from their ashes like a phoenix this season.
Besiktas’ group-stage opponents revealed
Following their qualification, Besiktas revealed their group-stage opponents on Friday. Eintracht Frankfurt (Germany), Ajax (Netherlands), Maccabi Tel Aviv (Israel), Olympique Lyonnais (France), Malmö (Sweden), Bod/Glimt (Norway), Twente (Netherlands), and Athletic Bilbao (Spain) formed a formidable group for Besiktas.
