EURO 2024: Demiral lifts Turkey over Austria to reach last 8
Merih Demiral lifted Turkey over Austria with a brace on Tuesday to send his team to the EURO 2024 last 8 against the Netherlands.
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DEMIRAL LIFTS TURKEY WITH BRACE TO BEAT AUSTRIA AND REACH EURO 2024 LAST 8
Demiral lifted Turkey with a brace to beat Austria, 2-1, and carried his team to the last 8 after their round of 16 match at the Leipzig Stadium in Germany.
Furthermore, the 26-year-old Al-Ahli center-back opened the scoring after just 57 seconds of the match to get things going.
Demiral was not yet done.
Moreover, he would come back on the hour mark to convert a header in the 59th minute.
Michael Gregoritsch delivered a goal for Austria in the 66th minute but that was not enough.
Interestingly, Demiral now has the second-fastest goal at the Euros.
Albania scored after 23 seconds against Italy in the group stage.
TURKEY COACH MONTELLA HAPPY FOR DEMIRAL AFTER STUNNING BRACE
Furthermore, Turkey’s coach Vincenzo Montella was happy for Demiral after his stunning brace.
“I’m happy for him, for the team, for the country, and I’m happy for the group we have created here,” Montella said.
The coach also lauded goalkeeper Mert Gunok, who dove right to deny a close-range header from Austria’s Christoph Baumgarner four minutes into added time.
“Well done to Mert. That’s his job to make saves and we are glad he made a match-winning save in the final minutes,” Montella said.
Demiral’s heroics meant a lot in Germany, which is home to some three million Turks or people with Turkish roots.
These fans will come back to root for their team when they take on the Netherlands in Berlin on Saturday.
AUSTRIA COACH DISAPPOINTED, ‘CANNOT IMAGINE WE ARE GOING HOME’
Moreover, Austria coach Ralf Rangnick was disappointed in the outcome, as they “cannot imagine we are going home.”
“I cannot imagine we are going home. We thought we could continue our journey here and get ready for the next few games and the players feel the same,” Rangnick said.
“That’s how it works with knockout games, one team progresses and the other doesn’t. Of course, disappointment is the main sentiment,” he added.
Austria defeated Turkey, 6-1, in a friendly in March.
However, this one is different due to Demiral’s and Gunok’s heroics at the right time.
Not even a huge downpour in Leipzig would dampen Turkey’s huge expat following, making the match more like a home game for Montella’s men.
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