2026 World Cup: Turkey suffers shocking defeat to Australia. Vincenzo Montella responds to the accusations

A rough start for Vincenzo Montella’s Turkey, which lost 2-0 to Australia in its 2026 World Cup opener. The Ottomans dominated the match but couldn’t find a way to break down the Oceanians’ defense, who, in contrast, were ruthless in capitalizing on their chances through Irankunda and Metcalfe.

After the match, head coach Montella came under fire from the press but defended himself: “That’s soccer: we wasted a lot of scoring chances, and they punished us on the counterattack. It’s never easy to face a team that defends so deep and then breaks on the counter. In cases like this, we needed a goal from a set piece, which didn’t come.”

The former Aeroplanino didn’t make a big deal out of it, though: “Nothing is lost; we’re looking ahead to the next two matches with confidence. We had 78% possession and 30 shots on goal. When you’re unlucky, that’s how it ends. We weren’t able to break the deadlock. Scoring a goal is crucial. We came very close, but it was difficult to break down their defense.”

Montella stated that he hadn’t underestimated the opponents and had great respect for them, saying: “I have great respect for Australia. I expected them to play this way, capitalizing on their strengths. They’ve managed to score a lot of goals that way. We didn’t think it would be easy; we analyzed their matches. The important thing is not to lose confidence.”