Ndidi earns Besiktas start as Italiano praises his strength in Basaksehir win

Besiktas coach Vincenzo Italiano says Wilfred Ndidi’s physical power and passing ability made him the right choice to start in Monday’s 2-0 Super Lig victory over Basaksehir FK.

The Nigeria international made only his second start in the Turkish top flight this season as Besiktas moved up to fourth in the table at Besiktas Park.

Hyeon-gyu Oh opened the scoring before Junior Olaitan, the Republic of Benin international of Nigerian descent, added a second goal for the Istanbul club.

Ndidi has had limited first-team opportunities this term, but he arrived at the match with renewed confidence after captaining the Black Eagles in their 2-2 draw with Crystal Palace last Thursday.

The midfielder also scored his first goal of the season in that game.

His inclusion against Basaksehir followed injuries to Orkun Kokcu and Fabio Miretti, who were both unavailable for selection. Ndidi was therefore given the chance to take a more prominent role in midfield.

Italiano said Ndidi offered different qualities to those provided by Kokcu and Miretti, while also praising his contribution despite having played fewer minutes than Salih and Olaitan.

“Wilfred Ndidi is a different kind of player compared to Orkun and Miretti,” Italiano was quoted as saying by Aspor.

“He’s had less playing time than Salih and Olaitan, but he’s done a good job, his passing quality is high.

“He’s a physically strong player. He had a good game on Thursday. He’s confident because of the goal. He will do a good job in place of Miretti and Orkun. I trust all my players.”

Ndidi’s start came after a summer in which he was strongly linked with a move away from Besiktas, although no transfer was completed.

Monday’s result gave the club a second successive boost after Ndidi’s international appearance and moved them into fourth place in the Super Lig standings.