After overpowering Armenia on Saturday, Türkiye's Crescent Stars will face an even trickier opponent in the 2022 Qatar World Cup semifinalists Croatia in the UEFA 2024 European Championship (Euro 2024) Qualification Group D match on Tuesday.
The Crescent Stars have their sights set on the upcoming Germany showdown. They hope to utilize their home advantage to make it two victories in a row after having an impressive start against Armenia, winning 2-1.
The match against Croatia will occur at the Bursa Metropolitan Municipality Stadium, which has hosted the Turkish team nine times.
Of those nine matches, five were official games, and three were friendlies that saw the Türkiye winning thrice, losing three times, and the remaining three ending in draws.
The Crescent Stars have scored eight goals in those games while conceding seven.
On Feb. 29, 2012, Bursa saw the Turkish side experiencing a heartbreaking defeat at the hands of Slovakia. Still, this time, the tables may be turned in their favor as the local fans are expected to show emotional support for the match against Croatia, with a staggering 43,361 people expected to attend.
Turkish Football Federation (TFF) President Mehmet Büyükekşi expressed his desire for the team to participate in the Germany UEFA 2024 European Championship.
He also stated that the national team's success gives the Turkish people morale, especially during these times following the Feb. 6 twin earthquakes.
He also stated that all income from the match would go towards the Shoulder to Shoulder Solidarity Campaign, which was started to support citizens affected by the earthquakes.
Ibrahim Burkay, the first deputy chairperson of the TFF and the president of the Bursa Chamber of Commerce and Industry, expressed his appreciation for the support from the people of Bursa, who have always shown great enthusiasm for the national team.
He invited everyone to support the "Shoulder to Shoulder" campaign and proudly do their Crescent Star uniforms during the match.
Hamit Altintop, TFF's member of the Board of Directors Responsible for National Teams, exuded confidence that the Turkish team will emerge triumphant against Croatia, buoyed by the passionate cheers of their devoted supporters.
This will be the 11th time the two teams face each other, with Croatia winning three times, Türkiye winning once, and the other seven matches ending in draws.
Croatia has scored 13 goals, and Türkiye has scored nine.
The first match between the two teams was held on June 11, 1996, in England's 10th European Championship Finals, with Croatia winning 1-0.
The most important match was the quarterfinal match in Euro 2008, where Türkiye won 3-1 on penalties and made it to the semifinals.
The most recent match between the two teams was in the 2018 FIFA World Cup European Qualification Group I match on Sept. 5, 2017, in Eskişehir, which ended in a 1-0 victory for Croatia.