Key events
Summary
Jonathan Howcroft
Jack Snape has filed his first report from Vancouver, which is my cue to down tools and return to that spillage. There will be mountains of reaction from the scene and the celebrations around Australia, so stay tuned to these pages as that comes in. Thanks for joining me today, I’ll see you again later in the tournament.
What does that do to your Bracketology? I saw Turkey cropping up in a few quarter and semi-final line-ups in recent days.
More from Popovic:
Proud of the staff for the work they put in and some good decisions there sideline. I tried to guide them, tried to support the players and they were outstanding.
[On Patrick Beach] We’ve always seen and I’ve got a lot of belief in the young man and he stood up today, so very happy for him.
[On Okon-Engstler and Irankunda] You see the young boys combining to score a goal and can’t underestimate what this will do for their confidence and belief.
[On Metcalfe] It’s probably the fittest that he’s been with us. He got a couple of games in with St. Pauli before he arrived into camp. And you can see the benefit of that and he’s put in a lot of work and I’m happy he got a goal because we keep asking him to shoot more and he should do better with his left foot and perfect stage to score
[On the USA next] Yeah, it’ll be a special game. I think being a World Cup game’s enough, playing a host nation is enough for us and we’ll recover, we’ll prepare well and respect a very good US side.
Next up for Australia is the USA in Seattle on 19 June. A winner will likely top the group, a draw should see both safely into the knockouts. Turkey take on Paraguay in Santa Clara in a match neither can afford not to win.
As you would expect, Tony Popovic is beaming with pride. “Proud,” he yells over the crowd noise in the flash zone. “Proud to be here as head coach and experience this… happy for a wonderful group of young men.”
“As much as Popovic and his team deserve huge credit, I thought the coaching performance from Montella left a lot to be desired,” comments Charlie Gatley. “Türkiye were so desperately crying out for anyone on the overlap and the decision to put on a target like Gül instead of a more complete attacker like Uzun didn’t make much sense to me given the height of Australia’s back three. It’s two difficult fixtures they’ve got to get right now.”
Absolutely, and they never tried to bait the press to draw Australia out of their shape, nor did they attempt to run with the ball at pace in central areas.
Earlier I wrote: the Socceroos are 45 minutes away from a result that will guarantee them knockout football. “Is this true?” Pardis Navi asks. “We haven’t even had the first games for all the groups. Australia could still end up fourth in their group. They could end up 3rd, but not top 8. Is this just a throwaway line or is their brilliant math happening behind the scenes that’s not being discussed (in which case, please discuss)?”
It is an assumption, not some brilliant maths. I’m very confident a single win will be sufficient to secure one of the eight third-best places on offer. There are enough groups with an obvious fourth-best outsider unlikely to earn three points.
But you are right, three points may not be enough to finish third in this group. However, Paraguay looked so ropey against the USA, and their goal difference took such a hammering, it’s hard to see them overhauling Australia over the course of the next two matches. I may well be wrong.
Chris Paraskevas is not getting carried away. Spoiler alert, he is getting carried away. “Outside of the Japan game, I haven’t seen a collective, team performance to rival this one from the Socceroos at a World Cup. Absolutely outstanding to a man.
I think Poppa was a bit laggard with his substitutions and against more flexible teams, he’ll have to be more proactive: Montella really played into his hands with a top-heavy setup. Just quietly, I think Turkey were expecting a commanding win, and didn’t really have a plan for going behind.
Nonetheless, he can take some credit for setting up a very, very promising central defence: Burgess was simply superb and has really improved in the Championship over the years.
When you combine the man mountains of Circati, Souttar and Burgess with Beach (1.9 m!), a selfless midfield and the unpredictable Irankunda…well, as a Greek with perma-fresh memories of Euro 2004, anything is possible. (Getting ahead of ourselves a bit…but it’s a World Cup, so dream big!).”
“Here is Istanbul, our street has gone very quiet,” reports Robert Lewis. “My wife Nuriye thinks it’s very unfair for the Aussies to pack their defence like that and there should be a rule to remove them one by one.”
And then going the other way Irankunda and Metcalfe scored goals of the very highest quality. Both clinical counterattacking finishes. How repeatable is a performance like that? Who knows, but that three points alone should be enough to see Australia into the knockout phase.
Turkey bossed possession 72-28 and with that earned one reasonable snapshot. They took 30 efforts on goal for 1.33 xG. Australia just defended too well. To avoid any errors given that volume of work for 100 minutes is phenomenal.
No Mat Ryan, no Jackson Irvine, no Mat Leckie, nobody with more than 38 caps in the starting XI, seven players aged 24 or under.
Absolutely staggering. What a performance from the Socceroos and a career-defining coaching display from Tony Popovic.
Full-time: Australia 2-0 Turkey
Perhaps the greatest performance and result in Australia’s World Cup history. A masterclass in defensive discipline, solidity, and counterattacking chance taking.
90+6 mins: Two corners offer nothing. Australia are going to do it.
90+5 mins: Yildiz picks out the underlapping Guler on the left. His cutback has purpose, but of course there’s an Australian to clear. Yildiz thumps one from range but Souttar stand in the way and wears it with pride.
90+4 mins: Behich robs Guler and can sprint clear… but play is called back, to a chorus of Australian boos in the stand.
90+3 mins: Calhanoglu switches wide to Yildiz, he clips over a tempting cross but there are no red shirts around and the towering Burgess plants a header clear. Now Irvine gets his Beckham Galactico era barnet to a clearance. And eventually the ball is behind for a goal kick.
90+2 mins: Yengi does his job, holding up play and winding down the clock on the right.
90+1 mins: Six minutes of added time to be played.
90 mins: Guler on the left now, digging deep into his box of tricks, but Circati is immovable. Now Yildiz has a go, but he can’t beat Geria. Over to Calhanoglu who crosses deep and it’s glanced behind for a goal kick. What an astonishing defensive performance this has been. Faultless.
89 mins: Guler is everywhere, popping up right and left, dropping to take possession and darting in behind. He slips, recovers, then shoots first-time following a Calhanoglu stepover – but it’s weak and straight at Beach.
88 mins: Kadioglu, Yildiz and Guler work the ball nicely to allow the latter in behind on the left but his cutback is too high for any teammates to attack. Australia then smash it clear and Yengi makes Turkey’s defence earn possession.
87 mins: A frustrated Akgun is the first name to be taken this evening by the referee, hacking down Metcalfe in transition.
86 mins: Save from Beach! Calhanoglu drills the free-kick low around the wall – again to the keeper’s side – and Beach is there to parry it clear.
85 mins: Gul enters the fray up front.
84 mins: Turkey go back to the well, recycling the ball from one side to the other in front of Australia’s defence, then as soon as they try to go vertically a boot with white socks attached intervenes. However, Irvine is penalised this time for his tackle and Turkey have a dangerous free-kick.
83 mins: The experience of Irvine and Behich replaces the youth of Bos and Okon-Engstler.
82 mins: Guler is trying to get things moving but there is nothing on ahead of him as Turkey run out of imagination. Australia have defended their opponents to distraction. Kadioglu tries to get around the outside on the left but Geria is there to head clear.
81 mins: Back to the red wave lapping against the golden shore. Back to a Turkish forward – Guler this time – shooting harmlessly from long range. Turkey are now starting to look a little forlorn.
80 mins: Ozcan and Muldur are now on for Turkey.
79 mins: Metcalfe’s delivery to the near post is headed clear. Still work to be done on set-pieces.
78 mins: Turkey are camped in Australia’s half. Calhanoglu tries to scheme but there are gold jerseys everywhere flinging themselves in harm’s way. Then when they finally clear Yengi does brilliantly to battle his way through a couple of challenges and the Socceroos get a releiving corner.
77 mins: Akturkoglu volleys straight at Beach on the six yard line! That was the clearest chance of the night for Turkey. The long ball over the top was headed across goal and the striker got a yard of space to hook an effort on goal. Either side of Beach and that was in.
76 mins: For bravery, discipline, industry, and the quality of strikes, this is on tracj to be Australia’s greatest ever World Cup performance. Absolutely unbelievable scenes in Vancouver.
Out of nothing, Australia double their lead. The Socceroos clear to midfield and benefit from some poor Turkish control. Metcalfe picks the ball up with nothing on, drives a few metres forward and infield, approaches the D, then lets fly with a low left-footed effort that scuds along the BC Place turf, beyond Cakir’s despairing dive, and inside the post. Australia are in dreamland.
GOAL! Australia 2-0 Turkey (Metcalfe 75)
Wow! Connor Metcalfe, take a bow.
74 mins: Yengi and Geria do come on. The former for the injured Toure, the latter for the overworked Italiano. Geria will have the dangerous Yildiz to deal with.
73 mins: The corner isn’t great, the second ball is slow, and Guler eventually shoots over from distance.
72 mins: Yildiz shows his dancing feet on the left to get a yard free of Italiano but Circati defends the cross at stretch superbly. Turkey keep coming and Celik finds himself in space on the right, he can get into the box and do something decisive – he shoots at the tiny space between Beach and his left-hand post and the ball goes behind for a corner. A very very rare look at open space in Australia’s box there.
70 mins: The crowd sing Mr Brightside as the drinks break ends. A tune I think would have been a belting terrace anthem at Old Trafford in the 80s when Norman Whiteside was running around.
69 mins: Geria and Yengi look like they are being readied to come on.
“We are getting too deep,” warns James Paraskevas. “The counter attacking threat is disappearing. Great chance to get fresh legs on. Mabil, Volpato, Hrustic, could be used.” Agreed.
The teams regroup at the three quarter time break. Can Australia cling on? Can Montella find a moment of magic from someone?
66 mins: Toure wastes a rare counterattacking opportunity and looks hurt in the process. Turkey try to exploiut the opportunity but Burgess – who has been magnificent (along with Souttar and Circati) – settles any nerves by shielding the ball out for a goal kick.
65 mins: Yildiz has two further efforts from outside the box charged down. The game is now being played in about a fifth of the surface area of the BC Place pitch.
64 mins: Pressure is building now from Turkey. Calhanoglu looks set to shoot in the D but Okon-Engstler gets a toe in – atoning for his earlier concession of possession after good work from Bos. Australia are now trapped in their defensive third and look incapable of forcing their way out at the moment.
