There are only three Canadians currently employed in the Turkish Süper Lig, and on Monday they all saw action in the same match.
Goalkeeper Milan Borjan and Sivasspor hosted Manisaspor — featuring Mike Klukowski (above) and Josh Simpson — in a midseason affair that could have seen Manisaspor climb back into the top four.
Sivasspor were less than hospitable hosts, however, and took the lead early before the visitors ultimately fought back to earn a 2-2 draw. Borjan logged 90 minutes in goal for the hosts, while Klukowski went the distance for Mansisapor. Simpson, who has been playing much more of a support role this season for Manisaspor, entered the match at the beginning of the second half.
The result sees Sivasspor into 10th spot on the table, while Manisaspor currently sit fifth.
Another potential Canadian derby took place on Monday night in Germany’s 2.Bundesliga, with Olivier Occean and SpVgg Greuther Fürth traveling to Rob Friend’s Eintracht Frankfurt for a top-of-the-table clash.
Unfortunately for Friend, only Occean saw time on the pitch in the evenly matched contest, as the two sides battled to a scoreless draw. Occean was lively throughout the game, and was shown a postmatch yellow card stemming from a scuffle with an Eintracht defender.
With the draw, Eintracht Frankfurt and Greuther Fürth remain second and third in the standings, respectively.
Also getting in on the action in the 2.Bundesliga was Adam Straith, who subbed into a 2-1 FC Energie Cottbus loss to Dynamo Dresden at the 75th minute. It was the 22-year-old defender’s eighth league appearance this season.
Up a division in the German top flight, Marcel de Jong put in his first 90-minute shift in a couple months as his club FC Augsburg nabbed a rare victory, 1-0 over visiting Borussia Mönchengladbach. The victory moved Augsburg out of the Bundesliga cellar.
In a rare Tuesday match, Kevin McKenna was a late entrant for FC Köln in a 1-1 draw with FSV Mainz 05. The Canadian national team captain played the final 15 minutes of the game after having sat out Köln’s 4-0 loss to Freiburg this past Saturday.
Over in Scotland, Marcus Haber scored a consolation goal in injury time of St. Johnstone’s 2-1 defeat at Aberdeen on Tuesday. The goal was Haber’s second for the Saints in the current Premier League campaign. St. Johnstone dropped two matches in three days, as the Saints also lost 3-0 to Motherwell on Saturday. Haber went 90 minutes in both games.
A few hours south in England’s Premier League, Simeon Jackson continued to see spot duty for Norwich City, coming into Saturday’s 4-2 win over Newcastle United with just five minutes remaining.
Jackson’s five minutes was more time than David “Junior” Hoilett saw, as the youngster missed Blackburn Rovers’ 2-1 loss to Sunderland over the weekend with a hamstring strain. Blackburn could have used Hoilett’s presence on the pitch, as the loss dropped the side back into relegation territory.
Down a rung in the Championship, David Edgar’s Burnley fell 1-0 to Portsmouth, with Edgar going the full 90 in the losing cause.
Meanwhile in League One, striker Iain Hume returned to Preston North End’s squad after a lengthy injury spell. Hume entered at the 46th minute of PNE’s 0-0 deadlock with Stevenage Borough and picked up a late yellow card for his efforts.
On the opposite end of the globe in Australia, Issey Nakajima-Farran started and went 65 minutes for the Brisbane Roar in a 2-1 loss to Melbourne Heart. After going on a year-long unbeaten streak that spanned over two A-League seasons, Brisbane have dropped two consecutive matches and now share the top spot in the league.
