Turkey was one of the most pleasant surprises of Euro 2024 in Germany, but did not make it beyond the top eight.
However, the applause of the fans said it all, as well as sympathy for the game of Vincenzo Montela's team, if the bad stat in the group against Portugal is excluded.
The President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, went down to the locker room of the national team after the elimination from the Netherlands, with a 2:1 rematch, and congratulated Montella on the game.
He was in the company of Minister of Sports Osman Ashkin Bak and President of the Turkish Football Association Mehmet Bükekşi.
"Thank you and congratulations on a great game, regardless of the result, you are champions for us. We are very satisfied and the team has a future and I believe that they will continue with great results. We are in the top eight, and we hope for the title of champion soon," Erdogan said.
Captain Hakan Çalhanoglu, Montel's coach, also believes that they did not disappoint, on the contrary!
"Thank you to everyone who contributed to our performance. We had a great tournament. We are all very sad now, but I hope we can achieve even more. Unfortunately, that's all! We have come a long way. We are happy to have created such empathy in our country. In football, there are also defeats, but our victory is that the fans saw us off with a standing ovation after the end of the game, which is a good sign," said the captain and added:
"We didn't start well in the second half and we conceded a goal. After the second conceded goal, we switched to long passes. That happens. It's a great honor for me to be part of this team and the achieved result," said the Turkish midfielder.
And the selector is clear:
"We were the youngest team in the tournament, and we paid the price for our lack of experience. We could have done better in certain moments. Fans from all neutral countries started to love us because of our uniqueness, team and individual. We have to stick to that," said Montela and emphasized that, in terms of quality, Turkey is now among the five best selections in Europe.
The fact that the neutral fans were delighted with the football game against the world power Holland until half-time is shown by numerous reactions.
Even one of the greatest hockey players of all time, the captain of the Washington Capitals wildly celebrated Turkey's goal against the Netherlands, which his wife posted on Instagram.
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