Şengezer reappointed
©IMAGO
Turkish national goalkeeper Berke Özer left coach Vincenzo Montella’s camp without permission after the clear victory in the World Cup qualifier against Bulgaria (6:1). The reason was obviously frustration with the 25-year-old not even being allowed to sit on the bench on several occasions. The Turkish association reacted with clear words in a statement and named Muhammed Şengezer from Başakşehir in the provisional squad for the match against Georgia (Tuesday, 8:45 p.m.).
Lille goalkeeper Özer, valued at 8 million euros according to the French Ligue 1 market value, first played for Turkey in the summer tests against the United States and Mexico. During the World Cup qualifiers in September, Galatasaray’s Uğurcan Çakır was again between the posts, with Besiktas’ Mert Günok as his representative. The fact that Özer left the national team after the match against Bulgaria without prior consultation did not go down well with the association.
« As has been emphasized many times, the responsibility and value of wearing the national jersey surpasses everything else. Our national team is a unit that represents the honor of the country, regardless of the individuals. Discipline, respect and team spirit are our most important principles which we will never abandon, » the TFF said in a statement on its website and continued: « At a time when we selflessly want to qualifying for the World Cup – a long-awaited goal for many years – and reaching its peak in unity and solidarity within the team, such behavior is unacceptable. »
The association announced that Şengezer would be replaced by Özer. Turkey are three points ahead of Georgia in Group E and second behind Spain. Montella’s side suffered an embarrassing 6-0 defeat to the Spaniards in September, which made the goal-rich victory over Bulgaria on Saturday night all the more important.
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« Our biggest dream is to qualify for the World Cup. We haven’t done that for many years, » Montella said after the match, adding: « Whatever happens, we will not give up on our World Cup dream and our ambition to get there. »