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Sergen Yalçın names 26-man squad for Belgium and France matches
Türkiye national football team head coach Sergen Yalçın has announced the 26-man squad for the UEFA Nations League A matches against Belgium in İzmir on Nov. 12 and France in Bordeaux on Nov. 15. Yalçın said they selected the players from a pool of around 60 footballers, adding, “Let’s play the match first. Then discuss it and judge us.”
Türkiye national football team head coach Sergen Yalçın has announced the squad for the upcoming UEFA Nations League A Group 1 matches against Belgium and France. Speaking at a press conference held in the Orhan Saka Conference Hall at the Turkish Football Federation's Hasan Doğan National Teams Camp and Training Facilities in Riva and broadcast live on the TFF's YouTube channel, the 54-year-old coach said they had selected 26 players from a pool of around 60 footballers.
Türkiye will host Belgium at İzmir's Gürsel Aksel Stadium at 8 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 12. The national team will then visit France at Stade Matmut Atlantique in Bordeaux on Sunday, Nov. 15. The France match will kick off at 8:45 p.m. local time, or 10:45 p.m. Türkiye time, and will be broadcast live on atv, like the Belgium match.
26-man squad by position
According to the list announced by the TFF, the players invited by Sergen Yalçın for the November camp and their clubs are as follows:
- Goalkeepers: Berke Özer (LOSC Lille), Ersin Destanoğlu (Al Jazira), Serhat Öztaşdelen (Kocaelispor), Uğurcan Çakır (Galatasaray)
- Defenders: Abdülkerim Bardakcı (Galatasaray), Ahmetcan Kaplan (NEC Nijmegen), Emirhan Topçu (Beşiktaş), Eren Elmalı (Galatasaray), Ferdi Kadıoğlu (Brighton & Hove Albion), Merih Demiral (Al Ahli), Mustafa Eskihellaç (Trabzonspor), Ozan Kabak (Hoffenheim), Zeki Çelik (Juventus)
- Midfielders: Arda Güler (Real Madrid), Can Uzun (Eintracht Frankfurt), Hakan Çalhanoğlu (Inter), İsmail Yüksek (Fenerbahçe), Orkun Kökçü (Beşiktaş), Salih Özcan (Beşiktaş)
- Forwards: Aral Şimşir (Trabzonspor), Barış Alper Yılmaz (Galatasaray), Deniz Gül (Galatasaray), Enes Ünal (Getafe), İlhan Fakılı (Beşiktaş), Oğuz Aydın (Fenerbahçe), Yunus Akgün (Galatasaray)
Galatasaray had the largest group on the list, with six players, while four footballers were called up from Beşiktaş. Eleven players in the squad play abroad. According to TFF data, goalkeepers Ersin Destanoğlu and Serhat Öztaşdelen, along with defender Ahmetcan Kaplan, have not yet played for the senior national team. Twenty-year-old İlhan Fakılı, who made his senior international debut in October, and Aral Şimşir, who made his first appearance in June, are also in the squad. The most experienced player on the list is Hakan Çalhanoğlu, who has made 108 appearances and scored 22 goals.
Yalçın also provided information about players who were not included in the squad. He said injured Kenan Yıldız wanted to join the national team, but Juventus wanted to continue the player's treatment within the club, so they told him he could stay. Başakşehir goalkeeper Muhammed Şengezer was also removed from the squad at the last minute because of an injury.
“Whoever deserves it will be there”
Emphasizing that a new era had begun for the national team, Yalçın announced that they had launched an artificial intelligence-supported player scouting and performance analysis platform they had been working on for a long time. Reminding reporters that they had a four-year period ahead of them, the head coach said, “We want to build not only today's team but also the team of the future. This country has very talented players. Our job is to bring them into the team in the right way.”
Yalçın said the door to the national team was open to everyone, adding, “Names and clubs are not very important. Whoever deserves it and whoever can contribute to this team will be there.” Yalçın said, “We want to give the national team the atmosphere of a club team. We have established a very serious scouting team. Our only goal is to qualify for the European Championship and the World Cup.”
Addressing members of the press, Yalçın said, “This is the people's team, your team. I have just one request from you. Please do not publish negative reports about the national team and our players before we have even started.” Saying that reports claiming some footballers had not answered their phones were untrue, Yalçın added, “There is absolutely no such player. Presenting things that did not happen as if they had happened harms the national team.”
Yalçın said he had spoken with goalkeeper Berke Özer, adding, “There had been some problems before. He has no problems now. He is eager to join the national team.” Responding to a question about Arda Güler, he said, “Arda Güler is a very young player. He has made a significant breakthrough. We will play him in whatever position he wants.”
Belgium match is “very valuable”
Assessing the group's final two matches, Yalçın said, “We will play with a striker. Our system will be somewhat different. We have not achieved healthy results in the last matches. We have our final two matches ahead of us and we still have a chance of avoiding relegation. The Belgium match is very valuable. I am considering starting with players who are physically ready.” Yalçın concluded, “Stories are rewritten. Let’s see what our story will be like. Let’s play the match first. Then discuss it and judge us.”
According to the schedule announced by the TFF, the invited players will assemble at the facilities in Riva from 1 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 9, and hold their first training session at 7 p.m. the same day. The delegation will travel to İzmir on Nov. 11, fly to Bordeaux on Nov. 13 and return to İstanbul on the morning of Nov. 16. Pre-match press conferences will be held at Gürsel Aksel Stadium on Nov. 11 and at Stade Matmut Atlantique on Nov. 14.
Photos: TFF. Sources: Anadolu Agency, TFF
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