Dele Alli scored his first goal for Besiktas on Sunday - but the game was marred after a fan ran on the pitch and attacked a player.
Alli, 26, joined Besiktas on a season-long loan from Everton last month following his recent struggles in England. The two-time PFA Young Player of the Year decided on a fresh start in Turkey after scoring just one goal in his last 38 Premier League appearances.
Alli needs to make an impression at Besiktas if he's to reignite his England career, winning the last of his 37 caps in 2019. He made his debut for the club against Sivasspor last Monday and scored in his second game on Sunday, helping them win 3-2 at Ankaragucu.
Besiktas conceded first in the game due to Giorgi Beridze's 26th-minute strike, with Jackson Muleka equalising a few moments later. Then came Alli's goal. The former Tottenham midfielder pounced on a flick-on from Wout Weghorst, who spent the second half of last season at Burnley, to make it 2-1 to the visitors. Alli seemed delighted with his goal, gesturing a love heart to supporters.
Beridze equalised for Ankaragucu but Besiktas found a winner through Georges-Kevin Nkoudou - another former Tottenham player - who scored a 74th-minute penalty. Alli failed to complete the game, coming off in the 66th minute. Interestingly, former Manchester United striker Federico Macheda - now 31 - was booked for Ankaragucu.
Sunday's result leaves Besiktas top of the Super Lig, two points clear of Konyaspor in second. Although it's still early days, Alli will be aiming to win the league title this season and secure the first major trophy of his career, as well as prove his doubters wrong.
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Alli has come under fire in recent years due to his form in England. He was predicted to become the Premier League's next superstar after his first two seasons at Tottenham, scoring 28 goals in the competition between August 2015 and May 2017 - all from midfield.
Yet Alli's form dipped significantly after Spurs reached the Champions League final in 2019, losing 2-0 to Liverpool in Madrid. Tottenham allowed him to join Everton in January and he failed to score a goal for the Toffees before being shipped out to Besiktas.
Although Alli enjoyed a dream evening against Ankaragucu, one fans landed himself in bother after running on the pitch and kicking Beskitas midfielder Salih Ucan in the back. His team-mate Josef de Souza was sent off for throwing the fan to the ground in retaliation.
Beskitas vice-president Engin Baltaci has questioned the referee for dismissing De Souza. "We want no violence on the pitch, even if it is isolated," read Baltaci's statement on Besiktas' website. "While a fan running 80 meters kicked our players, our player Josef, who wanted to protect his friends, was shown a red card. This is unacceptable.
"Ankaragucu management welcomed and hosted us well... I will not comment on referee decisions, commentators will. Josef's red card needs to be revoked. We will insist on this. Who would have received a red card if Josef had intervened in the attacker to protect the referee?"
Baltaci added: "We bring football players from Europe. If we let star players live in these environments, can we keep them in our country?"
