Samsunspor take on the visitors Dynamo Kyiv in the round 2 match of UEFA Conference League – league phase. The match will be played on Thursday, October 23rd at Samsun 19 Mayis Stadyumu (Samsun).
Samsunspor won the Turkish league bronze a couple of times back in the 1980s. But then came the hard years. They started this decade in the third division and only made their way back to the Super Lig in 2023. At first, they settled for 13th place, and last season they matched their all-time best result. However, this year, too many draws have kept Thomas Reis and his men stuck in mid-table despite losing very few matches. They were knocked out of the Europa League qualifiers by Panathinaikos (1-2 in Greece, 0-0 at home), but at least began their Conference League journey with a narrow 1-0 win in Poland against Legia. Recently, Samsunspor have shown impressive defensive discipline and remain unbeaten at home since August, which adds confidence before the upcoming European test. Their consistency and ability to avoid defeats make them one of the more stable teams in the Turkish top flight right now.
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Dynamo Kyiv faces growing criticism. The “White-and-Blues,” under Shovkovskyi, finally managed to make a breakthrough by winning the domestic title — going the entire 2024/25 season unbeaten. Yet they ended that campaign with a bitter Cup final defeat to arch-rivals Shakhtar Donetsk (on penalties, despite Shakhtar being in turmoil at the time). Their European campaigns have been nothing short of disappointing. This season things have only worsened — Dynamo have dropped points in nearly every other league game, particularly in autumn. In Europe, they scraped past Ħamrun Spartans in the Champions League qualifiers but then fell twice to Pafos without scoring, before also being eliminated from the Europa League by Maccabi Tel Aviv. Unsurprisingly, their 0-2 defeat to Crystal Palace in the Conference League came as no shock. The team’s form has clearly declined, and Shovkovskyi’s reported falling-out with his captain only deepened the crisis. Away from home, Dynamo have struggled to control matches and often look fragile defensively, which raises concerns ahead of this encounter.
The teams have never faced each other before, not even in a friendly match. All the advantages are on the Turkish side. It looks like they will hand the Ukrainian champions yet another defeat, so we expect a home win.
Prediction for the match: Samsunspor to win.
