Consigning a horrendous 2021-22 season to the past, Galatasaray made a vast improvement on that 13th-placed finish to return to their rightful place at the summit of the Super Lig table last season, collecting 88 points from their 36 contests to storm to the top of the leaderboard.
Okan Buruk’s men finished eight points clear of nearest rivals Fenerbahce to be crowned champions of Turkey for the 23rd time, having enjoyed a stellar streak of end-of-season form
with six successive wins – conceding just one goal in the process and being awarded a final 3-0 triumph versus Hatayspor – to close out a successful campaign.
The absence of European football no doubt benefitted a Galatasaray team who remained top from Christmas Day until the end of the season, but there was a sense of disappointment with their Turkish Cup exploits, as they lost 3-2 to Istanbul Basaksehir in the quarter-finals.
However, Buruk’s side will not be losing sleep over that result, as they also prepare to battle Kisvarda, Austria Vienna and Sturm Graz in pre-season before commencing their quest for a place in the Champions League group stages.
Either Zalgiris or Struga will await Galatasaray in the second qualifying round, while a Turkish Super Cup tie with bitter adversaries Fenerbahce is also on the agenda, but for now, the hosts will seek to avoid falling victim to the Tigers’ bite.
However, that bite eluded Hull City for large portions of the 2022-23 Championship season, as Rosenior’s men established a reputation as the stalemate specialists but often failed in their efforts to convert one point into three.
In what was their second season of second-tier football following promotion back from League One in 2021, consolidation was the aim for the Tigers, who improved on their 19th-placed ranking from 2021-22 to occupy 15th spot by the close of play this time around.
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Finishing seven points better off with 58 to their name, Hull actually collected an identical number of wins (14) while sharing the spoils on 16 occasions – only Rotherham United and Premier League-bound Luton Town played out more draws with 17 apiece.
Seven of Hull’s last nine fixtures in 2022-23 ended level – including their final two against Swansea City and Luton – and while they only suffered one defeat in that sequence too, just three of their final 16 contests ended with the Tigers taking home a maximum.
Rosenior’s side will are also scheduled to do battle with Hatayspor as part of their warm-weather camp in Turkey, before finalising their preparations for the new term against Grimsby Town, Barnsley, Bradford City and Scunthorpe United.
