A tenacious Turkish outfit held its nerve to survive a brave Kosovo Team as rain poured at the Fadil Vokrri Stadium in Pristina. The fans egged on Kosovo but Türkiye stood firm.
It was a night to remember for Ugurcan Çakir as the Turkish goalkeeper denied Kosovo several times with his brilliant keeping display. Kosovo could have taken the lead early but Fisnik Asllani’s effort was blocked by Çakir and Vedat Muriqi failed to capitalise on the rebound.
Türkiye, however, were well served by their young guns Yildiz and Güler who kept on the pressure with their pace and creativity, and eventually were rewarded with the all important goal in the second half.
Yildiz’s move from the left created the opportunity and Kerem Akturkoglou tapped in the ball in front of goal. Türkiye were ahead and as Kosovo sprang to equalise, the Turkish defence stood strong.
Türkiye survived the Kosovan onslaught to emerge 1-0 winners and qualified to travel to North America for the FiFA World Cup after 24 years, joining co-hosts USA, Australia and Paraguay in Group D.
Kudos to the Turks and their Manager Vincenzo Montella.