Mauro Icardi's brace for Galatasaray's 2-1 victory over Besiktas.

Mauro Icardi was the standout player in Galatasaray's (2-1) victory over Besiktas. The Argentine forward scored a brace and placed his team in second place in the Turkish Super Lig with 24 points, just two points behind the leader Fenerbahce.

The striker found a ball in the heart of the area just 18 minutes into the game and hit a powerful volley that was impossible for goalkeeper Fehmi Gunok to save. The ball went into the top corner and the player ran to celebrate with his teammates.

Later, Cenk Tosun scored the equalizer (28') and that's how the first half ended. The match was tied (1-1) and it seemed that the efforts of the 'Lions' were in vain. However, in the 59th minute, Sérgio Oliveira sent a cross into the area in search of the Argentine forward.

Then, the striker anticipated the defenders, headed the ball, and placed it near the right post of the goal. The goalkeeper only saw the ball hit the back of the net, while the celebration erupted among the fans at the NEF Stadyumu.

It is important to mention that with his brace, Mauro Icardi has scored three goals with the Galatasaray jersey. Previously, he had scored in the draw against Alanyaspor in the Turkish Super Lig.

As you may recall, with the presence of Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappé, and Neymar, Icardi had no place in PSG. He wasn't even called up, as he was not in the plans of coach Christophe Galtier, so his former agent Wanda Nara negotiated his loan to Galatasaray.

The 29-year-old player arrived in the French capital in 2019 and while he surprised with his goal-scoring ability in his first season, he gradually faded away, while his appearances in the tabloids became more frequent.

With 38 goals in 92 matches for PSG, counting all competitions, only five last season, the Argentine was far from his performance at Inter, where he scored 124 goals in 219 games.

In Turkey, both the forward and his family were welcomed by a crowd of fans at Ataturk Airport. This is a new adventure in which the attacker hopes to regain his best form with a team that, according to the board itself, paid €750,000 out of the €6.75 million annual salary of the Argentine.