Turkey World Cup 2026 team guide

This article is part of the Guardian’s 2026 World Cup Experts’ Network , a cooperation between some of the best media organisations from the 48 countries who qualified. theguardian.com is running previews from three countries each day in the run-up to the tournament kicking off on 11 June. The plan The last time Turkey made it to the World Cup , Arda Guler and Kenan Yildiz were not even born. After a 24-year hiatus, the Crescent Stars ended their exile by navigating a tense playoff path, eliminating Romania and then Kosovo. The coach, Vincenzo Montella, has guided the national team to back-to-back international tournaments with arguably their strongest squad ever. Turkey lost one game in their qualifying campaign – against Spain, the reigning European champions – picking up 13 out of 18 points. “I wouldn’t trade these players for anyone,” Montella said after the Kosovo win. “They have shown they can make sacrifices.” Guler and Yildiz were just breaking into the team at Euro 2024; the team now revolves around the duo. Turkish football has built a reputation for throwing around the term wonderkid loosely, but Guler, of Real Madrid, and Yildiz, of Juventus, merit the title. …