Tonali: Italy deserved to lose to Belgium, needs time
Sandro Tonali admits Italy deserved to lose 0-2 to Belgium in the Nations League, asks for patience with a young squad and says Tottenham are alive despite results.
Swimming national side
Turkey
National team · Turkey
«The Star and Crescent»
77
Matches
38
wins
16
draws
23
losses
142–111
Goals
+31
Difference
1.8
Scored per game
Form
W
1 Jun · Home North Macedonia · 4:0
L
6 Jun · Home Venezuela · 1:2
L
14 Jun · Away Australia · 0:2
L
20 Jun · Home Paraguay · 0:1
W
26 Jun · Home USA · 3:2
L
25 Sep · Home France · 0:1
The Atatürk Olympic Stadium sits on the edge of Istanbul, a bowl raised for an Olympic bid that never arrived, and it is where Turkey stage their biggest nights — though for other matches the federation still turns to Fenerbahçe's Şükrü Saracoğlu or the smaller Kadir Has, so the national side has never quite settled on one home even as the Atatürk's own capacity grew to 77,563.
The Turkish Football Federation was formed on 23 April 1923, and the team it put out played its first international that October in Istanbul, a 2-2 draw with Romania. A century later the crest still carries the crescent and star off the flag, which gave the side its nickname, Ay-Yıldızlılar, and the red shirt with white trim has held to those colours ever since.
The high point came in 2002: a run to the World Cup semi-final in Japan and South Korea, lost to Brazil, then a third-place win over South Korea that remains the best finish by a Turkish side at a major tournament. Six years on came a semi-final at Euro 2008, ended by Germany. The stretches either side have been leaner — Turkey withdrew from the 1950 World Cup over money, lost 7-2 to West Germany in 1954, and missed Euro 2004, Euro 2012 and four straight World Cups from 2010 to 2022. Qualification for the 2026 finals broke that run, before the side went out at the group stage in June.
Greece has long stood as the fixture that matters most, without the rivalry ever taking on a name of its own.
No one carries the shirt's history the way Hakan Şükür does — his 51 goals still stand as the national record, the bulk of them scored on the road that ended with Istanbul's one true finish on a World Cup podium.
Latest results
Fixtures and results| 25 Sep | UEFA Nations League |
France
H
|
0:1 | L |
| 26 Jun | World Cup |
USA
H
|
3:2 | W |
| 20 Jun | World Cup |
Paraguay
H
|
0:1 | L |
| 14 Jun | World Cup |
Australia
A
|
0:2 | L |
| 6 Jun | Friendlies |
Venezuela
H
|
1:2 | L |
| 1 Jun | Friendlies |
North Macedonia
H
|
4:0 | W |
Standing
UEFA Nations LeagueGroup stage · Group 1
| # | Team | M | W | D | L | Goals | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 |
 Albania
|
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2:0 | 3 |
| 2 |
 Gibraltar
|
1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0:0 | 1 |
| 3 |
 Turkey
|
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0:1 | 0 |
| 3 |
 Slovenia
|
1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0:0 | 1 |
| 3 |
 Belarus
|
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0:2 | 0 |
Team statistics
matches counted in total: 77
77
Matches
38
wins
16
draws
23
losses
142–111
Goals
+31
Difference
1.8
Scored per game
wins
draws
losses
scored — above the line
conceded — below the line
| Metric | Total | Home | Away |
|---|---|---|---|
| Matches | 77 | 39 | 38 |
| Scored | 142 | 75 | 67 |
| Conceded | 111 | 52 | 59 |
| Scored per game | 1.8 | 1.9 | 1.8 |
| Conceded per game | 1.4 | 1.3 | 1.6 |
| Difference | +31 | +23 | +8 |
Key players
by appearances over the last yearSquad of Turkey
by appearances over the last year| Number | Player | Position | Age | Matches | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 |  Altay Bayındır |
Goalkeeper | 6 | ||
| 13 | |
 Evren Eren Elmalı |
Defender | 26 | 6 |
| 19 | |
 Yunus Akgün |
Forward | 26 | 6 |
| 21 | |
 Barış Alper Yılmaz |
Forward | 26 | 6 |
| 5 |  Salih Özcan |
Midfielder | 6 | ||
| 9 | |
 Deniz Gül |
Forward | 22 | 6 |
| 7 |  Muhammed Kerem Aktürkoğlu |
Forward | 6 | ||
| 16 |  İsmail Yüksek |
Midfielder | 6 | ||
| 17 |  İrfan Can Kahveci |
Forward | 6 | ||
| 18 |  Oğuz Aydın |
Midfielder | 6 | ||
| 14 |  Abdülkerim Bardakcı |
Defender | 6 | ||
| 10 |  Arda Güler |
Forward | 6 | ||
| 1 |  Uğurcan Çakır |
Goalkeeper | 6 | ||
| 15 |  Ozan Kabak |
Defender | 6 | ||
| 20 | |
 Ferdi Erenay Kadıoğlu |
Defender | 26 | 5 |
| 2 |  Mehmet Zeki Çelik |
Defender | 5 | ||
| 3 |  Merih Demiral |
Defender | 5 | ||
| 11 |  Can Yılmaz Uzun |
Midfielder | 5 | ||
| 10 |  Hakan Çalhanoğlu |
Midfielder | 5 | ||
| 18 |  Mert Müldür |
Defender | 5 | ||
| 25 |  Samet Akaydin |
Defender | 5 | ||
| 6 |  Orkun Kökçü |
Midfielder | 5 | ||
| 22 |  Kaan Ayhan |
Defender | 5 | ||
| 1 |  Fehmi Mert Günok |
Goalkeeper | 5 | ||
| 11 |  Kenan Yıldız |
Midfielder | 4 | ||
| 4 |  Çağlar Söyüncü |
Defender | 4 | ||
| 22 |  Doğuhan Aral Şimşir |
Forward | 2 | ||
| 6 |  Melih Kabasakal |
Midfielder | 1 | ||
| 4 |  Emirhan Topçu |
Defender | 1 | ||
| 23 |  Okan Kocuk |
Goalkeeper | 1 | ||
| 20 | |
 Demir Ege Tıknaz |
Midfielder | 22 | 1 |
| 2 |  Atakan Karazor |
Midfielder | 1 |
Fixtures of Turkey
Honours of Turkey
- European Championship 2008 1
- FIFA Confederations Cup 2003 1
- World Championship 2002 1
Team news
Giorgio Scalvini extends Atalanta contract
The 22-year-old centre-back, an Atalanta academy product, has signed a new deal reportedly running through 2031 after 144 appearances for the club.
Ceferin Warns on Political Interference at FIGC
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Mancini leaves ten Italy players out ahead of Turkey clash
Roberto Mancini cut Barella, Gianluca Mancini and Ahanor among ten players who stay in Coverciano as Italy, winless after one match, head to Bursa to face Turkey.
James Garner reveals Nemanja Vidic was his boyhood hero
England call-up James Garner says he loved ex-Manchester United defender Nemanja Vidic growing up, and recalls playing centre-back before his Everton versatility.
Leny Yoro gets first France call-up, replacing Konaté
Manchester United defender Leny Yoro, 20, joins Zinédine Zidane's France squad after Ibrahima Konaté pulled out with a minor knee sprain before Turkey match.
Ibrahima Konate out 7-8 days with knee sprain, Real Madrid say
Real Madrid defender Ibrahima Konate left the France camp with a sprained knee but should be back for Villarreal on 10 October, with Mourinho short at the back.
Federico Higuaín sacked by Columbus Crew over ref remark
Columbus Crew fired reserve coach Federico Higuaín, brother of Gonzalo, a month after he told a female referee 'this is a man's game' and refused to release her hand.