The Süper Lig returns on 22 August 2026 with Çaykur Rizespor hosting Samsunspor at the Çaykur Didi Stadium. Both sides sit in the upper half of the table after matchweek one, with Rizespor carrying momentum from a narrow away win and Samsunspor looking to build further under Thorsten Fink.
Recep Uçar and Thorsten Fink have never met in competitive football, so their first encounter will be shaped entirely by what each side does on the day rather than any personal history, which in itself makes this a puzzle since neither coach can lean on what worked last time.
Rizespor arrive off the back of a 1-0 win at Konyaspor on 15 August, secured by Qazim Laçi's decisive strike. That result showed they could control central areas and hit cleanly on the break. Samsunspor, sitting one place below their hosts in seventh, have yet to play their second league fixture, though their opening weekend suggested a side that prefers to sit in a compact mid block and avoid committing men forward unnecessarily.
Uçar, appointed on 3 December 2025 after replacing İlhan Palut, has built a clear identity around midfield compactness. Fink, who took charge on 16 February 2026, has continued the same defensive structure Reis had set up before his departure. Rizespor's most significant absentee is defender Khusniddin Alikulov, sidelined with a cruciate ligament injury until early October, with no other notable absences on either side.
Rizespor typically deploy a 4-2-3-1 that lets two holding midfielders screen the defence while the front four rotate fluidly. Laçi's recent goal illustrates his growing influence in the final third, though his real value lies in dictating tempo from deeper positions. Ahmed Kutucu offers direct running from the left or as a second striker, pulling wide defenders away from Ali Sowe. Without Alikulov, Rizespor's back line loses a composed ball progressor, forcing the remaining centre backs to sit higher, which opens gaps that Samsunspor's counter attacks can exploit.
Samsunspor favour a compact mid block and look to transition quickly once possession is won. Fink's side will look to expose the space behind Rizespor's press and their double pivot tends to deny central lanes, which should force Rizespor's build up wide. Alikulov's absence may encourage Samsunspor to press Rizespor's full backs earlier in the build up, knowing the centre backs are less comfortable carrying the ball forward without him.
The individual duels should define the contest. Laçi against Samsunspor's central midfield pair is the duel that decides how much Rizespor can build through the middle: crowd him out and Rizespor's attacking fluency drops noticeably. Kutucu's movement against the away full backs could force the centre backs to track him, leaving Sowe room in behind. On the counter, Samsunspor's attackers must time their runs to beat Rizespor's two holding midfielders, who drop behind the ball fast once possession is lost and close the space before Samsunspor can build any momentum.
Eleven of the sixteen meetings between these clubs produced fewer than three goals, which fits what both managers are setting up to do here, with both coaches' preference for control likely to keep it that way.
Samsunspor's set piece routines could be decisive here and with both squads fresh enough that execution rather than fitness decides the finer margins, any well worked routine at a corner or free kick carries real weight.
This looks like a 1-2 for Samsunspor. Rizespor's midfield control and Sowe's movement in behind will create chances but Alikulov's absence leaves Rizespor's remaining centre backs covering more ground than usual on the turn at exactly the moments Samsunspor will look to exploit. The gaps that should open behind Rizespor's high press are exactly the spaces Samsunspor will want to attack and the visitors look capable of taking two of those chances while their hosts manage one reply from a set piece or a Laçi driven move.
Rizespor will press high early, if that produces nothing in the first twenty minutes, the tempo shifts. Samsunspor will take hold of the second phase gradually, inviting Rizespor forward before releasing their striker in behind the exposed centre backs. Any sustained Rizespor possession could see Kutucu isolate his marker and create the opening goal on his own, which adds a complicating thread to Fink's otherwise patient plan.
As the second half unfolds, Uçar may throw on an extra attacker to chase the game, though that risks further exposing a back line already missing its most composed defender. Fink's side, comfortable sitting on 1-0 or 1-1 scorelines, will maintain their shape and wait for the precise moment to break forward. The narrow historical margins between these clubs suggest the outcome hinges on one or two moments of execution rather than sustained dominance and on that measure Samsunspor's counter attacking setup gives them the cleaner path to the decisive moment.
Ryan Baldi
Football Writer
Ryan Baldi is a professional football writer with years of experience and has been featured by respected outlets such as the BBC, The Guardian, Sky Sports, DAZN, FourFourTwo, ESPN, Yahoo Sport and Football365. He has also written several books including Arsène Who?.
