Who thought the Türkiye would dominate Australia just because there is more tradition in the soccer was surprised in the early hours of this Sunday (14) with a 2-0 defeat at the BC Place stadium, in Vancouver (Canada).
The Turks had much more action in attack (29 shots on goal against 9), putting goalkeeper Beach in danger, but the Australians demonstrated that they do not have as fragile a team as they were in the past.
With a well-placed defense to hold back the rival and fast players in midfield and attack, the Oceania team also posed danger to goalkeeper Çakir, especially in counterattacks.
It was in one of these plays, in the 26th minute of the game, that Bos, from the defense field, threw to Irankunda behind the Turkish defense. The striker dribbled past Demiral and coolly hit Çakir low into the right corner.
The goal made Turkey accelerate their moves even more to try to equalize, but all the chances were lost: some shots went wide, others were blocked by the defense and few were saved by Beach.
At 29 minutes, Bardakci hit the Australian post, after Beach deflected the ball with his fingertips.
With Turkish pressure increasing, the Australians took advantage of their opponent’s mistakes to try to expand, and Irankunda, 20, who is the son of Burundian parents and was born in a refugee camp in Tanzania, almost scored the second in the 44th minute, but the goalkeeper saved it.
The second half started with both teams at high voltage, just like the first. The Australians even tried more attacking plays, not just waiting for counterattacks.
When the Turkish momentum suffocated their rival, with one shot followed by another, Australia scored the second goal, at 29 minutes, with midfielder Metcalfe. He picked up the ball in midfield, carried it close to the area and finished low, left-handed, into the left corner, with no defense for Çakir.
Afterwards, Beach saved his team again by saving a shot from Akturkoglu from inside the small area. He had already made a difficult save from Arda Güler’s free kick.
With the shock of conceding the second goal, the Turks began to despair, but the Australian defense remained impeccable and held off the intense rival pressure until the final whistle.
With the result, Group D has the United States in the lead with 3 points and 3 goals difference, ahead of Australia, with 3 points and only 3 goals difference. Turkey is in third and Paraguay in fourth, both zero.
