Ibrahim Haciosmanoglu, president of the Turkish Football Federation (TFF), defended the team and coach Vincenzo Montella on Monday following Turkey’s early elimination from the 2026 World Cup, which was marked by two consecutive defeats against Australia and Paraguay in the group stage. Despite the early exit from the FIFA tournament, where the national team was considered a strong favorite in Group D by many, the official expressed full support for the Italian coach, dismissing any speculation about his future and emphasizing the federation’s commitment to continuing the project. “We will support our coach. This is not a club. Clubs fail because they lack continuity,” he stated, adding: “In the last two days, there have been articles about potential coaches. We will not replace those we have worked with along the way for those we find along the way.” The federation leader also called for support for the players, highlighting the youth of the squad and its future potential. “We must not forget that it was our players who brought us here. Most of them are young. These players will take us to future tournaments. We need to support our players,” he declared to reporters before a training session in Arizona. Haciosmanoglu further argued that the results did not reflect the team’s quality of play, which, in his opinion, performed well despite a lack of effectiveness in finishing. “You can criticize the coach technically, but the ball that went near the post was in the middle. If Merih [Demiral]’s last-minute shot had gone in, we would be talking about different things today. This team made 65 shots in two games. Did they play poorly?” he defended.
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