The Turkey national football team (Turkish: Türkiye Millî Futbol Tak?m?) represents Turkey in association football and is controlled by the Turkish Football Federation, the governing body for football in Turkey. They are affiliated with UEFA.
Turkey has qualified three times for the FIFA World Cup, in 1950, 1954, and 2002, although they withdrew from the 1950 event. Turkey has also qualified four times for the UEFA European Championship, in 1996, 2000, 2008, and 2016. They have reached the semi-finals of three major tournaments: the 2002 World Cup, the 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup, and Euro 2008. After their third-place finish at the 2002 World Cup, which marked a high point in Turkish football history, Turkey occupied a spot in the top ten of the FIFA World Rankings for the first time since the rankings were introduced in December 1992.
Despite have never participated in as many tournaments like Islamic rivals such as Iran and Saudi Arabia, nor even achieving successes like Denmark or Greece, Turkey is considered as one of the stronger teams in Europe and the world, often gain more successful records than Middle East's Iran or Saudi Arabia achieved.
Video Turkey national football team
History
Early years
The Turkey national team played their first ever match against Romania in 1923, drawing 2-2. Zeki R?za Sporel is considered as the first big star of Turkish football as he scored the first two goals against Romania. Turkey played their first ever official match at the 1924 Summer Olympics losing 5-2 to Czechoslovakia.
1950 FIFA World Cup
Although Turkey qualified for the 1950 World Cup, beating Syria 7-0, they were forced to withdraw from the tournament due to financial problems.
1954 FIFA World Cup
Turkey then qualified for the 1954 World Cup after a play-off with Spain. The Turkish team first lost 4-1 to Spain, but a 1-0 win a few days later initiated a replay. On that occasion, they tied 2-2 after, booking their place after a coin toss. Turkey was put in a group along with Hungary and West Germany. The Turks, however, never played Hungary due to the tournament format, and a 4-1 defeat by the Germans was followed by Turkey carrying out a 7-0 win over South Korea. Turkey lost the play-off to West Germany 7-2. In 1956, however, Turkey did play Hungary in a friendly match in Istanbul, defeating what was one of the strongest teams of the era, 3-1. Lefter Küçükandonyadis, arguably one of the best Turkish players of all-time, scored two goals during the tournament.
Near misses
Despite the introduction of a national league, and showings by Turkish clubs in European competition, the 1960s would be a barren time for the national team. Most players from the 1954 World Cup squad were retired, and the new generation of players failed to qualify for a major tournament. The 1970s saw Turkey holding back in the World Cup and UEFA European Championship qualifiers, but the team was a point too short to qualify for both UEFA Euro 1972 and Euro 1976. In the 1980s the Turkish team also suffered their worst defeats with 8-0 scorelines against Poland and twice against England. Yet the 1990 World Cup qualifiers would mark a turning point for Turkish football, with Turkey only missing out on qualification in the final match. Prominent players in this period included R?dvan Dilmen, O?uz Çetin, R?za Çal?mbay, Feyyaz Uçar, and European Golden Boot winner Tanju Çolak.
1990-1996
In 1990, German coach Sepp Piontek was put in charge of the national team. Under his guidance, a group of new players debuted for the national team. Many of these players (which included Bülent Korkmaz, Alpay Özalan, Sergen Yalç?n, Rü?tü Reçber, and Hakan ?ükür) would become the backbone of the national team for many years. Piontek's mission came to an end in 1993, where he was replaced by Fatih Terim, who in turn managed to qualify for Euro 1996. Turkey qualified for its first major tournament since 1954, marking another turning point for Turkish football after having failed to qualify for both Euro 1992 and the 1994 World Cup. The appointment of Piontek was a recommended move by another German coach, Jupp Derwall, who had coached Galatasaray for three seasons. Derwall is regarded as the revolutionizer of Turkish football, since his introduction of modern Western European training techniques and tactical ideas to the Turkish game also heavily influenced the national team.
Euro 1996
Turkey qualified for Euro 1996, defeating both Switzerland and Sweden 2-1 en route during qualification. Despite a solid performance during the qualifiers, Turkey lost all their matches without scoring a single goal. They did, however, go home with an award: the fair-play award, given to Alpay Özalan.
Euro 2000
Although Turkey failed to qualify for the 1998 World Cup, they qualified for Euro 2000 after winning a play-off against the Republic of Ireland. Turkey lost their first match 2-1 to Italy, they drew their second match against Sweden 0-0, and beat host nation Belgium 2-0, making it the first time in the history of the UEFA European Championship a host nation had been eliminated in the first round. This victory brought Turkey into the last eight of the tournament, where they were beaten 2-0 by Portugal, with Arif Erdem missing a critical penalty.
2002 FIFA World Cup
For the 2002 World Cup, Turkey finished second in their qualifying group, despite starting well and being the favourites to top the group. They lost 2-1 to Sweden in the crucial match that would decide the top spot. The Turks were forced to play the play-offs against Austria. They defeated the Austrians 6-0 on aggregate and booked their place at the finals. The Turkish team started the 2002 World Cup with a 2-1 defeat against eventual winners Brazil. Turkey qualified from the group stage with a 3-0 win against China PR after drawing 1-1 with Costa Rica.
Turkey then faced home team Japan in the second round, winning 1-0. The Turkish team continued their run, as they beat Senegal 1-0 on a golden goal to book their place in the semi-finals, where a 1-0 defeat against eventual tournament winners Brazil forced them to play the third place match, and a bronze medal was won after a 3-2 victory over co-hosts South Korea. Hakan ?ükür scored Turkey's first goal in 10.8 seconds, even when the South Koreans kicked off first. It was the fastest goal in World Cup history. Tens of thousands of flag-waving Turkish fans greeted the World Cup squad on their return to Istanbul, where they joined a massive street party at Taksim Square. Rü?tü Reçber, Alpay Özalan and Hasan ?a? were all included in the All-Star Team, with Reçber also being voted as the best goalkeeper in the UEFA Team of the Year 2002, while ?enol Güne? was being voted as the best manager.
2003 FIFA Confederations Cup
In the summer of 2003, Turkey reached third place at the 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup. In the group stages, Turkey defeated the United States 2-1 before losing to Cameroon 0-1. In their final group match, Turkey drew 2-2 against Brazil, eliminating them from the tournament. Turkey lost to eventual tournament winners France 3-2 in the semi-final match. Turkey then defeated Colombia 2-1 to win the bronze medal. Tuncay ?anl? scored three goals and made an assist, which won him the Silver Shoe Award and the Silver Ball Award for the second best player of the tournament.
Euro 2004
The Turkish team failed to qualify for Euro 2004 on play-offs due to a loss to Latvia after finishing second in their group. This marked a turning point for the national team as new players were introduced to the national team to create a new generation.
2006 FIFA World Cup
The Turkish team once again narrowly missed out on the World Cup finals after failing to win a play-off, this time on away goals against Switzerland, again after finishing second in their group. There were scenes of violence after the game on and off the pitch where the Turkish team brawled with Swiss players down the tunnel.
Euro 2008
Turkey qualified for their first international tournament in six years by finishing second behind Greece in Euro 2008 qualifying Group C to reach the Euro 2008 final stages. They were placed alongside Switzerland, Portugal and the Czech Republic in Group A. In their first match, they played Portugal and were beaten 2-0, but wins over Switzerland (2-1) and the Czech Republic (3-2) - both secured by late goals - brought qualification for the knockout stages. Again, Turkey knocked out a host nation - Switzerland - in the group stages for the second time.
The quarter-final against Croatia was goalless after 90 minutes, and Croatia led 1-0 in the final minute of extra time, but another late Turkish goal by forward Semih ?entürk brought the game to penalties. The goal raised some controversy with Croatia fans and Croatia head coach Slaven Bili?, who claimed that the goal had been scored after extra time had elapsed. This complaint, however, was overruled, and the game went into penalties. Turkey defeated Croatia in penalties, 3-1.
Turkey went into the semi-final against Germany with just 14 outfield players available as a result of injuries and suspensions, but scored first and were drawing 2-2. But they finished third by default after losing 3-2 with a last minute goal by Philipp Lahm. Both Russia and Turkey were given bronze medals in the dressing rooms after the semi-finals.
2010 FIFA World Cup
For the 2010 World Cup qualifiers, Turkey had a mixed qualifying campaign, finishing with 15 points and missing out on a play-off place to Bosnia and Herzegovina with 19 points. Spain topped the group to qualify, winning every game in the process. Coach Fatih Terim announced he would be resigning his post following their failure to qualify.
Euro 2012
Turkey were drawn in Group A in qualification for Euro 2012, together with Kazakhstan, Austria, Belgium, Germany and Azerbaijan. The Turkish team reached the play-offs after beating Azerbaijan 1-0 but got eliminated 3-0 on aggregate by Croatia. On 14 November 2012, Turkey celebrated their 500th match in a friendly game played against Denmark at the Türk Telekom Arena, Istanbul, which ended in a 1-1 draw. Before the match, footballers and coaches, who contributed to the national team's success in the past, were honoured. Turkish pop singer Hadise, who wore a national team jersey with the number 500, performed a small concert.
2014 FIFA World Cup
Turkey were drawn in Group D in qualification for the 2014 World Cup, together with Andorra, Estonia, Hungary, the Netherlands and Romania, finishing fourth. Turkey began to lose critical points during qualification and Abdullah Avc? was sacked soon after. Fatih Terim was put in charge for the third time to lead the national team, but a 2-0 defeat against the Netherlands ended hopes of qualification.
Euro 2016
Turkey were drawn in Group A in the qualification campaign for the Euro 2016, together with Iceland, Latvia, Kazakhstan, the Netherlands and the Czech Republic. The Turkish team qualified for their first major tournament in eight years as the best third-placed team after beating Iceland 1-0, with Selçuk ?nan netting a free kick in the 89th minute. After over 18 months unbeaten, a loss to England as a pre-tournament friendly ended the team's winning streak, subsequently leading to back-to-back losses against Croatia and Spain in the tournament. Turkey won their last game against the Czech Republic, 2-0, but this victory was not enough to reach the knockout phase of the competition. Despite elimination, youngster Emre Mor's skillful display and assist during the game revealed a hopeful future for Turkish football.
2018 FIFA World Cup
Turkey were drawn in UEFA Group I for the 2018 World Cup qualifying campaign. During the qualifiers, head coach Fatih Terim stood down after an off-field incident, and 72-year-old former Romania manager Mircea Lucescu took over. After eight games, Turkey stood a strong chance of qualifying for the tournament, but a 0-3 defeat against Iceland at home ended automatic qualification hopes. After a 2-2 draw against Finland the team finished fourth in Group I.
Maps Turkey national football team
Fixtures and results
2016
2017
2018
Coaching staff
Players
Current squad
The following players have been called up for the friendly matches against Iran, Tunisia and Russia, on May 28, June 1 and June 5, 2018.
Caps and goals updated as of 1 June 2018 after the match against Tunisia.
Recent call-ups
The following players have been called up for the team within the last 12 months.
- Notes
- PRE = Preliminary squad.
- RET = Retired from international football.
- WD = Withdrew from the squad.
- INJ = Withdrew due to an injury.
Previous squads
Competitive record
FIFA World Cup
UEFA European Championship
- *Draws include knockout matches decided by penalty shoot-out.
Summer Olympics
FIFA Confederations Cup
Mediterranean Games record
Honours
- FIFA World Cup
Third place (1): 2002
- FIFA Confederations Cup
Third place (1): 2003
- UEFA European Football Championship
Semi-finals (1): 2008
Total results by opponent
The following table shows Turkey's all-time international record, correct as of 1 June 2018.
Player history
Most capped players
Players in bold are still active, at least at club level. As of June 1, 2018.
Top goalscorers
Goalscorers with an equal number of goals are ranked in chronological order of reaching the milestone. Bold indicates still active players. As of October 9, 2017.
Past managers
Decoration
In 2002, the national team was honored with the Turkish "State Medal of Distinguished Service" for its third place achievement at the 2002 FIFA World Cup. All the team members, coaches and officials were bestowed by a medal.
Gallery
Notes
References
- Fifa.com Rankings - Turkey
- Turkish Football Federation Site
External links
- Turkish Football Federation website (in English) (in Turkish)
Source of article : Wikipedia
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