Back to  Soccer  news
Highlights of the Süper Lig’s stellar 2021-22 season
Jul 1, 2022, 1:08:00 AM

Highlights of the Süper Lig’s stellar 2021-22 season

The Turkish Süper Lig always has matches that are fun to watch. People need to look back at the 2021-22 season to see how exciting the league was and what’s in store for the upcoming 2022-23 campaign.

The Turkish Süper Lig is one of the best leagues that you can look into. It has gone under the radar which is why some people should look at the most recent 2021-22 season because that is the best example of a strong campaign for the Turkish football league.

With that, let’s take a look at the most prolific clubs in the Süper Lig and how they perform at the highest level of football in their country.

Bet on future soccer matches

Who is the best team in Turkish Süper Lig recently? 

The Süper Lig is well known for a plethora of teams that have reached the biggest stages in Europe. If you want to learn more about the Süper Lig, you should check out the best-performing teams that have performed in competitions like the Champions League and the Europa League. Here are some of them. 

Trabzonspor is crowned Turkish Süper Lig champions

In the 2021-22 season, Trabzonspor managed to win the league in another heated title race. The Süper Lig is well-known for these title races, especially for the 2020-21 season when Beşiktaş and Galatasaray had the exact same record but the former had a one-goal lead in the goal differential. Thankfully for Trabzon, they had an easier time in the 2021-22 season because they beat Fenerbahçe by eight points.

Fenerbahçe is the closest team

Fenerbahçe was a solid club for the Süper Lig’s 2021-22 season because they kept in step with Trabzon for almost the entire campaign. Near the end of the season, Fene stumbled which left Trabzon to take the title home. They had 21 wins which was just two behind the champs. 

How many Turkish teams qualify for the Champions League? 

The Champions League is the biggest competition in Europe and for Turkish teams, two squads make it to the UCL stage. The Süper Lig winners are guaranteed a direct entry to the Champions League group stage while the second-placed team will enter the 2nd qualifying round of the UCL. In the most recent season, Trabzon will be directly entering the UCL while Fene will have to fight for their spot in the UCL. 

In the Süper Lig’s history, Galatasaray is the most familiar team to the rest of Europe because they have always found a way to stay within the top two. Gala has stood out because they are usually one of the representatives in the UCL. 

Check out the outright soccer odds

What were the relegated teams in the 2021-22 season? 

While some teams succeed with their seasons in the Süper Lig, four teams have to deal with the unfortunate relegation and play in the second tier of Turkish football which is called the TFF 1. Lig. Now, let’s look at the Turkish Süper Lig teams that were relegated from the top division and have to claw their way back up the totem pole. 

Rizespor

After four years of being a fixture in the Turkish top-flight, Rizespor had a poor year in the 2021-22 season in the Süper Lig. While they showcased some potential during the season with 10 wins to their name, they could not keep up with the rest of the teams.

Atlay

After they were promoted to the Turkish top-flight for the first time since the 2002-03 season, Atlay is on its way back to the second tier. They were promising at times but they could not overcome their issues with their defence. This was disappointing for older fans because it was a cathartic experience to get promoted but they have to go back down again. 

Göztepe

Just like Rizespor, Göztepe was a fixture in the Süper Lig for a long while but they suffered a huge blow this season as they lost too many games en route to the second tier of Turkish football. This was disappointing for Göztepe because they were just in the upper half of the Turkish Süper Lig standings the season before. 

Yeni Malatyaspor

Another long-term team that fell this season is Yeni Malatyaspor. This club joined at the same time as Göztepe and Rizespor and they are being relegated at the same time too. This was a lost season early on for Yeni because they kept losing and they could not make up their points as the season progressed. 

There were limited bright spots in this team because of their poor season but Benjamin Tetteh needs to be recognised given that he kept scoring goals for the team even if they were struggling. 

Make inplay bets on soccer matches

What were the Süper Lig’s biggest transfers of the 2021-22 season? 

The Süper Lig is not as lucrative as other leagues but it still has some big transfers that have significantly affected the teams. These three transfers were the biggest in the recent Süper Lig campaign. 

Victor Nelsson to Galatasaray (€7.00 million) 

As a defender, most people might not recognise the work that is being done on the pitch. Galatasaray was underwhelming in the 2021-22 season but their defence was solid. This can be credited to the work done by Victor Nelsson who is known to be a tough defender and he showcased this during his first year with Galatasaray. 

At only 23 years of age, Nelsson has a bright future ahead of him because he’s a tough defender who is also a proven player on the international stage with Denmark. He stands at six-foot-one which is a standard size for centre-backs but he is still rapid with his movement. The €7.00 million was worth it because he has proven to be a rock-solid player who can improve with time. 

Mbwana Ally Samatta to Fenerbahçe (€6.00 million) 

This deal should be given an incomplete grade because Samatta only played four games with Fene in the past season. He is a good player but he was not seen as a key piece for the 2021-22 season at Fenerbahçe which led to his loan spell at Royal Antwerp in Belgium.

He still has three years left in his contract which means he has a chance to cement himself in the team again. Before he was moved to the team in the 2021-22 season, he was on loan at Fene and he was playing well with five goals during his spell. Now, he has the chance to do that again in the future when he suits up for Fene. 

Andreas Cornelius to Trabzonspor (€5.12 million) 

Alongside Nelsson, another member of the Danish national team joined the Turkish top-flight with Andreas Cornelius moving from Parma to Trabzonspor. 

This is arguably the best signing of the 2021-22 Süper Lig season because he was significant for their run towards the league title. He scored 15 goals in 37 games played for Trabzon as he cemented himself as one of the best strikers in the league. At €5.12 million, this was a bargain for Trabzon when you look at their success from this move. 

Who were the Turkish League top scorers? 

Now that we talked about the most significant transfers of the 2021-22 season, we should take a look at the best goal-scorers of the season. Here are the top three Turkish Süper Lig goal-scorers and how they managed to score those goals. 

Umut Bozok

While he is only on loan at Kasımpaşa from his parent club Lorient, Umut Bozok proved that he was the top goal-scorer in the Süper Lig. He played in all 38 games and he scored 20 goals which meant that he was scoring more than a goal every two games. That pace meant that he was the top scorer for the season as he was declared the Gol Kralı for the 2021-22 season. 

Ayoub El Kaabi

Back in June 2021, Ayoub El Kaabi signed a two-year contract with Hatayspor which was one of the best decisions he has made in his career. In his first season with the club, he cemented his place in the club’s rotation and he rewarded the team’s trust in him by scoring 18 goals in the 2021-22 season. 

Mario Balotelli 

Most known for his time with Manchester City, Mario Balotelli has always been known as a solid goal-scorer. He is also known for his big personality which irked some teams in the past. In 2021, he signed with Adana Demirspor where he became a top goal-scorer again. This was the role that he wanted after some rough stints with other clubs. 

Who were the best players of the 2021-22 Süper Lig season? 

The 2021-22 Süper Lig season was filled with talented players standing out from the rest of the pack. It was a special campaign for the Turkish top-flight and that is largely due to the top players of the league. Here are the best players that played in Turkey’s flagship league. 

Uğurcan Çakır

Known as one of the best goalkeepers in Turkey, Uğurcan Çakır showed the football world why he was seen as one of the world’s top prospects in years past. Now that he has matured and grown into a strong GK, Çakır cemented his place as the top GK amongst Turkish football players with his performance for the title-winning Trabzonspor. 

Kim Min-Jae

As one of the most consistent fixtures in the South Korean national team, it was about time that Kim Min-Jae thrived outside of his native South Korea. He joined Fenerbahçe before the 2021-22 season on a four-year deal. Kim was the strongest defender during the season as he used his wide frame. 

Lucas Biglia

While Lucas Biglia is an older player, he managed to perform pretty well for Fatih Karagümrük from 2020 to 2022. The 2021-22 season was a strong campaign for the Argentine as he proved to be a strong midfielder in almost every aspect. 

Andreas Cornelius

With Cornelius’ move from Parma to Trabzonspor, he cemented himself as one of the best players of the season. He scored 15 goals during the 2021-22 season to help Trabzon secure the title. He also fulfilled his role as a striker because he knows the defence led by Çakır’s goalkeeping. 

Check out why Sportsbet.io is the best sportsbook for you

What were the best games of the 2021-22 season?

The 2021-22 Süper Lig season was one of the best in recent memory. It was filled with high-quality games that needed to be recognised. Here are some of the best Süper Lig fixtures from the 2021-22 campaign. 

Trabzonspor vs Fenerbahçe 3-1 (October 17, 2021)

This was an all-important game for the Süper Lig title race because Trabzonspor took a crucial win over their title rivals Fenerbahçe three goals to one. The first goal was scored by Diego Rossi as capitalised on a Mesut Özil pass in the third minute. It was a good start for Fene as they took a crucial lead.

Despite that strong start, Fene struggled when Kim Min-Jae was given a red card. Trabzon capitalised with Anastasios Bakasetas scoring a goal to equalise at one goal apiece. To end the match, Trabzon went on another flurry as Bakasetas finished up his brace in the 87th minute and Yusuf Sari cemented the third goal in the 90th minute. 

Adana Demirspor vs Göztepe 7-0 (May 22, 2022)

While the previous match was crucial for the title race, this match between Adana and Göztepe was on the final game day of the season. This did not mean anything to the big picture of the competition but it was a massive win that included one of the best performances across all Süper Lig matches during the 2021-22 season.

This was the game where Balotelli scored five goals in a single match which should be commended. He is only 31 years of age despite being in the mainstream football space for a long while. This is his redemption performance as he proved that he deserves a top striker spot.

Who is the favourite to win in the 2022-23 season?

With the 2021-22 season coming to a close, the 2022-23 Süper Lig season will be one of the most exciting in recent memory. Some teams will remain top contenders but certain clubs can pull off some big seasons. Here are some of the favourites that you can check out for the 2022-23 campaign. 

Trabzonspor 

As the defending champs, Trabzon will have a target on their back. They won by a relatively big margin in the 2021-22 season which means that the other teams in the Süper Lig will try to catch up. They will still have most of the core that won the most recent title which means that they will be one of the strongest clubs yet again in the following year.

Fenerbahçe

Just like Trabzon, this Fene squad will be mostly the same from the 2021-22 season. They will be a top contender moving forward because the likes of Kim, Özil, Rossi, and many more will be looking to perform at the upper echelon of the Süper Lig again.

Konyaspor

They were under the radar but Konyaspor managed to get a third-spot finish in the 2021-22 season. Some people might say that it was a fluke but they proved that they don’t need an expensive squad to keep up with the best teams in the Turkish top-flight. They have a good crop of talent that is ready to prove that Konyaspor should not be underestimated. 

These are the teams that you should take note of when you’re looking to bet on the Süper Lig because they will constantly appear in the markets. However, you should also take a look at the underrated teams in the Turkish top-flight like Galatasaray which wants to extend their lead for the Süper Lig most championships wins in history.

Bet on Süper Lig matches at Sportsbet.io!

If you’re looking to bet on the Süper Lig, you should check out Sportsbet.io. They have the best betting markets that you can bet on. Do not miss out on the offerings at Sportsbet.io because they will help you maximise your winnings. If you want to try something different, you can also check out the site’s very own online casino where you can play slots and live dealer games. Good luck and have fun!

For updates on soccer and other sports, go to Sportsbet.io

Words: Cholo Martin

Image: Alamy