Fenerbahce Holds On for 1-0 Win Over Sivasspor

Fenerbahce Holds On for 1-0 Win Over Sivasspor
By Nathan L. Redd

Roberto Carlos scored his first goal as a Yellow Canary, allowing Fenerbahce to pick up three points Saturday with a 1-0 win over Sivasspor. Fenerbahce exerted dominance over the Sivas side for much of the first half, and Roberto Carlos put Fener on the board in the 30th minute with a magnificent header. Zico went with a starting eleven of Carlos, Onder Turaci, Diego Lugano, Alex de Souza, Mateja Kezman, Deivid de Souza, Edu Dracena, Selcuk Sahin, Deniz Baris, Tumer Metin, and Serdar Kulbilge.

Serdar left the game early in the second half after a knee injury. He underwent an MRI after the game. Volkan Demirel came in to preserve the clean sheet for Fenerbahce. Ali Bilgin also entered the game in the 89th minute replacing Deivid de Souza.

Fenerbahce had many opportunities from Mateja Kezman to increase their lead, but he could not find the back of the net. The Fenerbahce defense and goalkeeper Volkan stepped up to pick up the three points. Edu Dracena, Diego Lugano, Selcuk Sahin, and Deniz Baris all picked up yellow cards in the game.

After the game, Roberto Carlos told Fenerbahce TV "This is really an unforgettable goal. I hope that this goal will bring me luck and help me to score more and more goals for Fenerbahce. This has been my third goal which I scored with a header. Honestly I do not even remember, when was the last time that I scored a goal with a header. When I was playing for Real Madrid, my friends always kissed my head right after I had scored a goal. Especially in the national team Ronaldo used to kiss my head. I believe that it kind of brings me luck. I dedicate my goal to my father who will return to Brazil tomorrow. All my life I have tried to be a natural person and tried to be friends with everyone. That is why I share my happiness with everybody."

Zico commented after the game "Today we never gave up on fighting and were really effective at both wings. I consider our perfomance as positive. Now we have four days to get ready for the upcoming Anderlecht match. I think that four days are enough to relax and work. My only concern is Serdar's health condition. All footballers did their best and fulfilled my expectations."

With the victory behind them, Fenerbahce now looks to focus on their UEFA Champions League second leg matchup with Anderlecht. The team will travel to Brussels early in the week for the Wednesday kickoff.

More to come on the upcoming Fenerbahce vs. Anderlecht UEFA Champions League match later this weekend. Check back with Fenerbahce Worldwide for more updates.

(All photos courtesy of Fenerbahce.org)