Antalyaspor v Kocaelispor: relegation fight meets mid-table push | OneFootball

Antalyaspor host Kocaelispor in the Süper Lig on Sunday, 17 May 2026, in Antalya, with the home side seeking vital points in the survival battle and the visitors looking to firm up a mid-table finish.

Kocaelispor won the reverse fixture 2-1 in December, while Antalyaspor come in 17th and inside the relegation zone. The visitors are 10th, clear of trouble but without momentum.

Form is fragile on both sides. Antalyaspor are winless in five league games, losing four of them, including defeats at Beşiktaş and Galatasaray. Kocaelispor are also five without a win, drawing three and losing two across that run.

Selection could be shaped by absences. Antalyaspor are without injured defender Veysel Sari and suspended midfielder Erdogan Yesilyurt. Kocaelispor list defenders Mateusz Wieteska and Botond Balogh, plus goalkeeper Aleksandar Jovanovic, as injured.

Routes to goal may hinge on efficiency. Antalyaspor have conceded 55 league goals, the second-worst figure among the current bottom three, but they do have eight clean sheets and a 78.35% passing accuracy to build from. Kocaelispor have scored 26 and kept 10 clean sheets. Bruno Petković leads their scoring with seven league goals, while Antalyaspor's Ramzi Safuri has five assists.

Antalyaspor sit on 29 points. A win would lift them to 32 and could move them out of the relegation places. Kocaelispor are on 37. Victory would take them to 40 and strengthen their grip on a mid-table finish.