Euro 2016

Turkey can go deep again: Terim

Turkey forward Burak Yilmaz (front) won the Man of the Match award with a tireless display and a goal in their 2-0 win over the Czech Republic.
Turkey forward Burak Yilmaz (front) won the Man of the Match award with a tireless display and a goal in their 2-0 win over the Czech Republic. PHOTO: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

LENS • Triumphant Turkey coach Fatih Terim says his side can go deep into the Euro 2016 tournament, if they manage to qualify for the knock-out stages as one of the four best third-placed teams.

After limp losses to Croatia and Spain, the Turks delivered a stunning performance full of fire and passion to defeat the Czech Republic 2-0 on Tuesday and finish third in Group D on three points.

They face a wait until the other groups are concluded this morning (Singapore time) to see if they qualify.

Turkey have a better record than Albania, also on three points, but need one more team from the remaining two groups to finish third with an inferior record.

If they do make it, coach Terim believes they could repeat their performance at the 2008 tournament, when they made it to the semi-finals only to lose to a last-minute goal as Germany won a thriller 3-2.

"Our confidence is growing. We have still some problems but now it's easier to find some solutions," he said.

"We have a good side and now we have our team spirit back. Everybody was involved. If we advance, I think we will go a long way."

Goals from Burak Yilmaz and Ozan Tufan gave the Turks a victory few had predicted beforehand, with Yilmaz winning the Man of the Match award for his tireless display.

"I'm very happy, I scored an important goal in a very decisive game, and every thing worked very well," he said.

"It's been a good night, a good goal for me."

Czech coach Pavel Vrba was disappointed with his side's exit but said the young players in his squad had learnt valuable lessons.

"Of course our goal was to qualify, and we didn't manage that. I'm not going to say that our performance here was any good," he said.

"On the other hand, all three matches have shown that international football is very different from the Czech league - international players are on a different level."

REUTERS

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on June 23, 2016, with the headline Turkey can go deep again: Terim. Subscribe