TURKEY – ROMANIA. The Turkish national team carried out their first extended squad training this evening after most of the stars who performed over the weekend joined Montella's squad. The team traveling from GSP to Istanbul attended, on Monday, the 15 training sessions open to the public, and the first impressions are in the lines below.
- Turkey – Romania will be played on Thursday, March 26, from 19:00, match broadcast by Prima TV. If we win, we play the qualification final against Slovakia/Kosovo on March 31, 2026.
- Gazeta Sporturilor has 6 experienced reporters in Istanbul who will send the most important information, reports and a series of multimedia correspondence.
On Tuesday evening, at the base of the TFF Riva Facility in the north of Istanbul, the Semilune national team carried out the fourth training session since the reunion, but the first one in which the selector Montella had almost the entire squad at his disposal. With the exception of Arda Guler, involved in Real's match on Sunday night, all the stars made an appearance at the base of the Turkish team.
Arda Guler absent, Calhanoglu separated
In an annoying drizzle, Montella's players took to the pitch around 18:30 local time, where they were met by a whole “battalion” of local journalists. More than 45-50 journalists and cameramen came to the base to take the pulse of the national Crescent.
Journalists present at Turkey's training/ PHOTO: Remus Dinu (GSP)
The big absentee from tonight's session was Real Madrid star Arda Guler. Last night's starter in the electric derby with Atletico, Arda has had a different recovery schedule and will join Montella's squad on Tuesdaythe officials of the Turkish Federation told us.
From the base to the course, the Turkish players were transported in electric “buggies” specific to golf competitions, and then entered the green for accommodation.
Selector Montella gave a short speech to his students, who then moved on to a short break-up movement. They exchanged passes in groups of 4-5 players before runs made under the watch of “seconds”.
The only one who did not take part in the whole “ritual” was Hakan Çalhanoglu. Chivu's player, who arrived among the first on the field, did not train with the rest of the group. He chatted amicably with the staff, then performed three “idle” shifts. Used for 69 minutes in the draw with Inter Fiorentina, he benefited from a separate training regimen, and will start the normal program tomorrow.
Medical problems: three absent, one player will leave the squad
Not only Lucescu, his counterpart Vincenzo Montella also faces some medical problems at the team level.
Defenders Merih Demiral (Al Ahli) and Zeki Celik (AS Roma) are dealing with medical problems and are uncertain for Thursday's clash as their injuries have not improved in recent hours. The situation of the first one is even worse than the medical staff estimated!
As of late, Aral Simshir's medical report is even more problematicthere is a 99% chance that Midtjylland's top scorer will be sent home, with a slim chance of his recovery.
The Turks benefit from an impressive base
The TFF Riva Facility, officially known as the “Hasan Doğan National Teams Camp and Training Center”, is the ultra-modern training center for all Turkish national teams, located in the Riva area of the Beykoz district.
Inaugurated in 2014, after an investment of approximately 60 million Turkish lira, the facility belongs to the Turkish Football Federation and concentrates in one complex all the technical and administrative activities of the national teams.
The complex includes several building bodies dedicated to offices, medical and recovery areas, as well as accommodation and food spaces, alongside state-of-the-art sports infrastructure: seven training pitches to FIFA standards (with natural, artificial and hybrid turf), night facilities, fitness rooms and recovery facilities such as swimming pools, sauna or treatment rooms.
For fear of the players being spied on and for security reasons, the base was cordoned off by police crews, with law enforcement making sure that no intruders ran wild inside the training base.
Turkey's squad for the draw with Romania: players from Real Madrid, Inter, Juventus
For the duel with Romania, the Turkish coach, Vincenzo Montella, summoned 30 players. Here are the names that the “tricolors” will face on Thursday:
porter: Altay Bayindir (Manchester United), Mert Günok (Fenerbahce), Muhammed Sengezer (Istanbul Basaksehir), Ugurcan Cakir (Galatasaray)
DEFENDERS: Abdulkerim Bardakci (Galatasaray), Ahmetcan Kaplan (NEC Nijmegen), Eren Elmalı (Galatasaray), Ferdi Kadıoğlu (Brighton), Merih Demiral (Al Ahli), Mert Müldür (Fenerbahce), Mustafa Eskihellaç (Trabzonspor), Ozan Kabak (Hoffenheim), Samet Akaydin (Rizespor), Zeki Celik (AS Roma)
INTERMEDIARIES: Atakan Karazor (Stuttgart), Hakan Calhanoglu (Inter), Ismail Yuksek (Fenerbahce), Kaan Ayhan (Galatasaray), Orkun Kökçü (Besiktas), Salih Ozcan (Borussia Dortmund)
ATTACKERS: Aral Simshir (Midtjylland), Arda Güler (Real Madrid), Barış Alper Yılmaz (Galatasaray), Deniz Gül (FC Porto), Irfan Can Kahveci (Kasimpasa), Kenan Yıldız (Juventus), Kerem Akturkoglu (Fenerbahce), Oguz Aydin (Fenerbahce), Semih Kılıçsoy (Cagliari), Yunus Akgun (Galatasaray).
