In the press conference held at the Volkspark Stadium in Hamburg, where tomorrow the Turkish National Football Team will face Czechia in the third and final match of Group F in the 2024 European Football Championship (EURO 2024), the technical director Vincenzo Montella made statements. Montella commented on Czechia playing with a back three defense, saying, “We have played against many teams playing with a three-man defense. They have different characteristics. We also have our own methods. I believe that we will be the ones with the advantage. Frankly, we are used to this kind of game.”
Montella expressed that unjust criticisms motivate them, “First and foremost, I want the players to share my way of thinking. We heard players like Cenk Tosun say that they are part of the best team they have been in for the last 12-13 years. There will always be criticism. There will be fair criticism. Personally, I accept it. It makes me stop and think. There are also unfair criticisms. This entertains and motivates us. There could be various reasons for unfair criticisms. We are all united. We will not allow our focus to be distracted. We are motivated. Our destiny is in our own hands.”
The Italian coach emphasized the need for support for the team, “Pressure has been a part of my job for 30 years. You need to learn this. This is a positive pressure. We came here as leaders. Our goal is to advance from the group stage again. We won our first match. Turkey has not done this before. Tomorrow we are in a positive position. Our supporters will back us from the first whistle to the last. I would like to remind the critics; this is our country. There is no other national team. These children have made us proud in recent times, we need to support them. The children really need this support. We will fight to the end. We need to focus on our own match.”
Regarding Arda Güler’s injury, the experienced coach commented, “Let me clarify this matter. Arda is not in a condition to play for long periods. He played in the previous match. I did not make the decision alone. Our doctor, our medical team, and the player decided together. He had a certain time limit to play without taking a risk. He played that much. The next day, a famous video appeared. We met with our medical team and himself and saw this. We jointly determined that after a certain period, he would not be able to sprint and that his physical fitness level was not suitable for that. When Arda realized that he could not go beyond a certain level of exercise, he did the programmed training himself to avoid unnecessary risks. He has been training for two days.”
Montella pointed out the importance of finding the right structure and balance, saying, “What this team needs the most is balance. The game is in our hands, we dominate, and when we need those qualities to press the opponent in the last 30 meters, of course, our forwards will also be on the field. We are one of the most attacking teams in the tournament. It is important to establish the right structure and balance.”
In response to a question about goalkeeper choices, Vincenzo Montella stated, “We have players in our squad who have played fewer minutes than others. It should be valid for everyone. Altay played well in the matches against Wales, Germany, and Italy. We have three great goalkeepers. We have a nice problem like this. It is also important to have competition in the same position.”
The 50-year-old coach stated that the team faced difficulties after the second goal in the Portugal match, “Things got very tough for the team after the second goal. It happened at an unexpected moment. These things are part of football. Naturally, our motivation also decreased. We had scoring opportunities. We are talking about players who can play at the highest level. They play a match every three days. The difference is that they created chances and were able to use them. We couldn’t do the same. We couldn’t do similar things.”