The Turkey Euro 2024 squad is steadily taking shape, with Vincenzo Montella finalising the 26 players he's taking to Germany.
The Crescent-Stars are out to prove a few people wrong, too. They were billed as dark horses for Euro 2020 but put in a poor showing to head out in the group stage. The squad has only improved since then, however, and Montella is looking to emulate the sides of 2002 and 2008, who both made unlikely tournament semi-finals.
There are a few players who will be key. Hakan Calhanoglu has become one of Italy's most cultured midfielders at Scudetto winners, Inter, and he'll sit alongside Orkun Koksu, who complements him nicely. In Arda Guler, Ferdi Kadioglu and Kenan Yildiz, there is an abundance of young talent, while Ugurcan Cakir is regarded as a top goalkeeper.
There are unfortunately big absences, however. Former Leicester man Caglar Soyuncu has been a rock at the back in recent years, Bournemouth striker Enes Unal has had to pull out through injury and defensive depth has been dealt a further blow with former Liverpool loanee Ozan Kabak withdrawing, too.
The Turkish are here at Euro 2024 after a good showing in qualification and now find themselves in Group F with real hope that they can get to the knockouts. 2016 winners Portugal, the Czech Republic and first-time qualifiers Georgia all lie ahead – and if the fixtures fall Turkey's way, there may be hope of a surprise quarter-final at least.
Along with information on every other Euro 2024 squad, FourFourTwo will provide all the latest news on and details on how to watch every game at the tournament, keeping you up to date at all times.
Turkey's squad
Turkey Euro 2024 squad: The 35-player provisional team
- GK: Mert Günok (Beşiktaş)
- GK: Uğurcan Çakır (Trabzonspor)
- GK: Altay Bayındır (Manchester United)
- GK: Doğan Alemdar (Troyes)
- DF: Zeki Çelik (Roma)
- DF: Merih Demiral (Al-Ahli)
- DF: Ozan Kabak (TSG Hoffenheim)
- DF: Mert Müldür (Fenerbahçe)
- DF: Ferdi Kadıoğlu (Fenerbahçe)
- DF: Cenk Özkacar (Valencia)
- DF: Abdülkerim Bardakcı (Galatasaray)
- DF: Samet Akaydin (Panathinaikos)
- DF: Ahmetcan Kaplan (Ajax)
- MF: Hakan Çalhanoğlu (Inter Milan)
- MF: Kaan Ayhan (Galatasaray)
- MF: Okay Yokuşlu (West Bromwich Albion)
- MF: Orkun Kökçü (Benfica)
- MF: Salih Özcan (Borussia Dortmund)
- MF: İsmail Yüksek (Fenerbahçe)
- MF: Abdülkadir Ömür (Hull City)
- MF: Arda Güler (Real Madrid)
- MF: Berat Özdemir (Trabzonspor)
- MF: Can Uzun (1. FC Nürnberg)
- FW: Cenk Tosun (Beşiktaş)
- FW: Yusuf Yazıcı (Lille)
- FW: İrfan Kahveci (Fenerbahçe)
- FW: Kerem Aktürkoğlu (Galatasaray)
- FW: Barış Alper Yılmaz (Galatasaray)
- FW: Yunus Akgün (Leicester City)
- FW: Kenan Yıldız (Juventus)
- FW: Oğuz Aydın (Alanyaspor)
- FW: Semih Kılıçsoy (Beşiktaş)
Turkey Euro 2024 squad numbers
Turkey fixtures and results
March 22: Hungary 1–0 Turkey, Puskas Arena, Budapest, Hungary
March 26: Austria 6–1 Turkey, Ernst-Happel-Stadion, Vienna, Austria
June 4: Italy 0-0 Turkey, Stadio Renato Dall'Ara, Bologna, Italy
June 10: Poland v Turkey, Stadion Narodowy, Warsaw, Poland
June 18: Turkey v Georgia, Westfalenstadion, Dortmund, Germany
June 22: Turkey v Portugal, Westfalenstadion, Dortmund, Germany
June 26: Czech Republic v Turkey, Volksparkstadion, Hamburg, Germany
Turkey manager: Vincenzo Montella
Appointed in September 2023, with less than 12 months until Turkey's first game at Euro 2024, Montella has a huge job on his hands. The Italian replaced the outgoing Stefan Kuntz, completed the qualifying job and has been preparing the Turkey Euro 2024 squad ever since.
This is the former Roma and Italy striker's first job in international management, having previously taken charge of Turkish Super Lig outfit Adana Demirspor, Sevilla and AC Milan – among others.
Turkey's star player
Hakan Calhanoglu
Born in Germany, Calhanoglu spent a large part of his life in the host nation of Euro 2024 before his switch to Italy in 2017, having played for Karlsruher, Hamburg and Bayer Leverkusen. Now at Inter Milan, the midfielder proved an integral member of their Serie A-winning side this term, and is even more important for his national team.
A leader on the pitch, the 30-year-old is one the deadliest strikers of a dead ball around, posing a serious goal threat whenever he stands over a free-kick or picks up a sniff of goal from 25 yards out. His range of passing is exquisite, too, so sit off him at your peril.
FAQs
How many players are Turkey allowed to take to Euro 2024?
The Turkey Euro 2024 squad will feature 26 players. Teams were initially told they'd only be allowed 23 players, as UEFA moved to reduce squad sizes, but nations pushed back against that idea.
