When Başakşehir were reduced to ten men in the 10th minute, things theoretically seemed easier. However, football isn't played theoretically; on the field, we witnessed a plan orchestrated by Nuri Şahin, also known as "resistance engineering." Başakşehir's ability to remain so compact and control the game so easily despite playing with ten men was living proof of why numbers alone don't mean everything in football. Considering what Beşiktaş experienced in their match against Fenerbahçe when they were down to ten men after being 2-0 up, this is a commendable performance.

Match commentary is separate from the news. Opinion columns .

Fixture Trabzonspor matches .

Trabzonspor, while creating moments of pressure until the 100th minute, struggled to establish lasting dominance. The deadlock was broken by Muçi's long-range shot, a missile that should have been controlled in the air. Ironically, if that ball hadn't gone in, we would now be complaining about 'why did he defy physics and attempt that bizarre shot from the edge of the penalty area?' Sometimes in football, a 30-meter shot can resolve a two-week debate.

Turning to Başakşehir… We had almost forgotten they were down to ten men. It's clear Nuri Şahin had an extra motivation against Trabzonspor – the scientific explanation for which is still missing. He deserves congratulations; the game plan was correct. However, his exaggerated celebration after the equalizer made him look more like a player who scored a last-minute goal than a coach. I wish the cameras had turned back to him after Muçi's rocket shot; it's scientific curiosity, we would have liked to see his reaction.

On the Trabzonspor side, both praise and questions are intertwined.
The coach said after the match, "We need to come to terms with where we are, but we're not getting enough support." From a league table perspective, he's right; nobody can argue otherwise. But analytically, there are questions that need answering:

— What is the technical reasoning behind insisting on Okay at center back?
— Is there any plausible reason why Sikan didn't get any playing time?
— Why can't they send even one accurate cross to Onuachu?

Yes, after the goal in the 90th minute, these questions were naturally put aside, but let's remember: if the goal hadn't come, we would be discussing a completely different situation today. Victory is the best makeup; it can hide some flaws, but it doesn't eliminate them.

On the other hand, we have to give credit where credit is due.
Trabzonspor, which couldn't even get an away win last year, is now unbeaten in 8 matches. Had it not been for the infamous refereeing fiasco in the Fenerbahçe away game, we'd even be talking about an unbeaten record. So the progress is real, sustainable, and measurable. Therefore, criticism should also be framed; because there is a project underway. We shouldn't crush this team and coaching staff under the weight of the expectations that have risen due to their own success.

The general framework is as follows:
Trabzonspor exceeded expectations at the start of the season, but there's still a long way to go. Completing this journey requires ample workspace for the coaching staff and more patient support for the team. Yes, we are genetically an impatient community; we want to see success immediately. But sometimes patience is as valuable an investment as a transfer.

And in conclusion:
The signings of Pina, Batagov, Folcarelli, and even Oulai and Felipe (although the investment cost is debatable), show that the club is finally approaching a sound scouting-engineering model. If 2-3 more additions are made with this mindset during the mid-season transfer window, we could start speaking a completely different language in the second half of the season.