Turkey clinched a dramatic 2-1 victory over Austria on Tuesday, booking their place in the Euro 2024 quarter-finals.
Merih Demiral was the star of the match, scoring both goals for Turkey.
Turkey took an early lead just 58 seconds into the game. A corner kick from Real Madrid’s Arda Guler caused confusion in the Austrian defense.
Christoph Baumgartner’s clearance hit his teammate Stefan Posch, and the ball fell to Demiral, who smashed it into the net.
Demiral doubled Turkey’s lead in the 60th minute with a powerful header from another Guler corner.
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This made Demiral the first European defender to score twice in the knockout stages of a major tournament since 1998.
Austria quickly responded. Michael Gregoritsch scored in the 67th minute after a corner from Marcel Sabitzer.
Despite their efforts, Austria couldn’t find an equalizer.
The final moments were intense as Turkey’s goalkeeper, Mert Gunok, made an important save to deny Baumgartner’s header in stoppage time.
Arda Guler was a constant threat to Austria’s defense, filling in for the suspended Hakan Calhanoglu.
His set-piece delivery was key to both of Demiral’s goals.
Turkey will face the Netherlands in the quarter-finals on Saturday in Berlin.
This is Turkey’s first time reaching the quarter-finals of a major tournament since Euro 2008.
