Two Turkish fans stood in the middle of a three-lane carriageway. They held a Turkish flag between lanes so cars on the way to the Olympiastadion could pass under it. A bigger red and white flag was draped over the highway from a bridge further down the road. Those who didn’t drive, processed to the ground on the stony outskirts of west Berlin. An estimated 15,000 marched until local police broke up the crowds due to “continued political messages”. Grey Wolf gestures like those that led to centre-half Merih Demiral receiving a two-match ban, a punishment which was described by his coach Vincenzo Montella as “misunderstood” and his teammate Ferdi Kadioglu as “unfair.”
Saturday’s quarter-final against the Netherlands was the biggest game for Turkey in 16 years. So big that head of state Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s motorcade sped through the rain to make it in time for kick-off. Erdogan had flown in specially to see if Turkey could reach the last four of the Euros for the first time since 2008 when Semih Senturk, a member of Montella’s staff, scored in extra-time of extra-time to take Croatia to a penalty shootout, where they prevailed on an epic night in Vienna.
Samet Akaydin must have thought he was Semih for a new generation when he appeared at the far post to head in a cross from Arda Guler that was so delectable, even on his weaker foot, that two of Akaydin’s teammates were queuing up behind him to score if he failed. But it wasn’t to be 2008 all over again. Turkey could not hold onto their lead as they did against Austria four days ago. Goalkeeper Mert Gunok had no more miracles left to work. He couldn’t claw out Stefan de Vrij’s equaliser in the same heroic way he did Christoph Baumgartner’s header in Leipzig. He couldn’t stop Mert Muldur’s own-goal from trickling past him.
“We should have no regrets,” Montella said, running his hand through slick black hair. “We gave it our all.” His team looked to have finally found the necessary balance to go far in this competition against Austria. The long balls his centre-backs played were a problem for Virgil van Dijk, Stefan de Vrij and Nathan Ake as Muldur and Baris Yilmaz threatened to run in behind or win second balls. Perhaps Turkey would have made it through to the semi-finals in Dortmund had Xavi Simons been sent off for an apparent, accidental stamp on Muldur, or if Wout Weghorst hadn’t hooked a loose ball away from Kaan Ayhan in his own penalty area, or if substitutes Zeki Celik and Kerem Akturkoglu had shown more composure in front of goal.
“We weren’t very lucky about that,” Montella said, alluding to Simons’ potential red.
But rather than bitterness, his overriding emotion was pride. Turkey failed to qualify for the Euros in 2012. They didn’t get out of the group in 2016 and lost every game in 2021. “When I took charge of the national team, there was fear we would not qualify,” Montella liked to remind his critics. “Not only did we qualify with a game to spare we topped the group.” Turkey won in Croatia for the first time ever. They beat Germany in a friendly for the first time in more than 70 years. “It’s a year of firsts,” Montella underlined.
Hakan Calhanoglu’s emotional reaction to Turkey’s Euro 2024 elimination (Alex Grimm/Getty Images)
The Italian has copped flak for playing a strikerless system, which was perceived as negative regardless of the array of attacking players elsewhere on the pitch. He came under more fire for the changes he made against Portugal, particularly the decision to drop Kenan Yildiz and the golden boy Guler, which quickly obtained the same optics as dropping Cristiano Ronaldo for Portugal or Lionel Messi for Argentina. But Montella didn’t let the media pull him down. He pushed on.
“I’m proud of my team,” he smiled. “They played with great spirit, the Turkish spirit. We felt the love in spite of our defeat. The Turkish people loved us.”
They loved Mulder’s opener against Georgia and Guler’s curler. They loved Cenk Tosun’s stoppage time clincher against the Czech Republic, Demiral’s brace against Austria and Gunok’s save. They loved the pluck, the fight and vibrancy of a team personified by Guler, who stood out as much for his character as his class. “He played a great Euros,” Montella reiterated. “He hasn’t played regularly at this level. He was born in 2005. He’s not 20 yet. This experience will make him a far better player.” Perhaps one of the best in the world.
The tournament also helped restore Montella’s reputation. He rolled back the years to when he first emerged as a coach; a record points total with Catania, four fourth places finishes with Fiorentina, a Coppa Italia final and Europa League semi-final, Milan’s first trophy in five years and European qualification, Sevilla’s win at Old Trafford against Manchester United. Would he stay on in charge of Turkey beyond this tournament? Or might he use the Euros as a springboard to bounce back into job with a big club?
“Why should I?” Montella shrugged. “I worked here. I enjoyed it. I celebrated. I’m very proud of my team because most of them are still young and I’d like to reap the fruits of this experience.” That begins with the Nations League and the World Cup qualifiers in the autumn. Montella isn’t yet thinking about the next Euros or the one after that which Italy, his country, and Turkey will co-host.
“I look at the future with much more confidence and clarity,” he said. Turkey is a nation of 85m people. Germany’s Turkish community alone is estimated to be more than seven million. They are football mad. But Turkey has punched below its weight for too long. This summer the national team hit much harder and the hope is that this won’t be another false dawn like in 2008. “My opinion after this European Championship,” Montella said, “is that Turkey will be seen with different eyes in the future, probably with more respect.”
(Top photo: Sebastian Christoph Gollnow/Getty Images)
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