On Saturday, Turkey will face the Netherlands in the quarterfinals of Euro 2024, a tournament dominated by a diplomatic dispute between Turkey and Germany. In the other quarterfinal, England is set to move one step closer to ending its 58-year wait to win a major tournament in an attempt to beat Switzerland, UNN reports citing AFP.
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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will take part in the match at the Berlin Olympic Stadium amid a diplomatic scandal between his country and Germany, which is hosting the championship, over the two-match suspension of Turkish defender Merih Demiral.
The center back, who scored both of Turkey's goals in a 2-1 victory over Austria in the round of 16 on Tuesday, has been banned by UEFA for celebrating with a gesture linked to the Turkish right-wing extremist group Gray Wolves.
In a statement, UEFA said that Demirall was disqualified "for violating the basic rules of decent behavior, for using sporting events to display unsportsmanlike behavior and for damaging the reputation of football.
УЄФА дискваліфікував захисника збірної Туреччини за ультранаціоналістичне вітання05.07.24, 16:37
German Interior Minister Nancy Faser warned that "the symbols of Turkish right-wing extremists have no place in our stadiums.
Then, on Wednesday, Turkey summoned the German ambassador to the country over the politicians' reaction to the way Demirali was celebrated.
Turkish Sports Minister Osman Askin Bak said that the ban "has no legal basis and that we consider it purely political.
Erdogan himself said that Demiral was merely "showing his excitement," and several ministers and a representative of his ruling AKP party condemned Fazer's reaction.
Turkey will be supported by tens of thousands of fans who unexpectedly turned all the national team's matches, up to the eighth final, into a red and white mass in stadiums across the country, the newspaper writes. It notes that Germany is home to nearly three million people with Turkish roots.
Vincenzo Montella's men will try to take advantage of this support to reach the semifinals of the European Championships for only the second time.
The Dutch are favorites to reach the final four for the first time since Euro 2004.
According to the publication, Ronald Koeman's team was disappointing in the group stage, as they qualified only because they were one of the best teams that took third place.
But they achieved their goal in the 1/8 finals, defeating Romania 3-0, and became one of the tournament's top scorers in the person of Liverpool's Cody Gacko.
The winner of the Berlin match will face either England or Switzerland in the semifinals on Wednesday in Dortmund.
England's head coach Gareth Southgate has spoken out about speculation that the Three Lions were given an easier path to the final as a "right" of the media in his home country.
Despite reaching the quarterfinals of the fourth consecutive major tournament under Southgate's leadership, England has not yet been able to live up to the hype as one of the competition's favorites due to a series of poor performances, the publication notes.
They needed a brilliant moment from Jude Bellingham in the dying seconds to beat Slovakia after extra time in the round of 16 and move up a place in the competition to play the Swiss in Dusseldorf.
Switzerland defeated Italy 2-0 in the previous round and also beat Germany 1-1 in the group stage.
Spain will face France in the semifinals on Tuesday in Munich after two dramatic quarterfinals on Friday.
Євро-2024: Іспанія обіграла Німеччину й вийшла до півфіналу 05.07.24, 21:48
The hosts suffered a heartbreaking defeat: a header by Mikel Merino in the last minute of extra time brought Spain a 2-1 victory over Germany.
France defeated Portugal on penalties after a 0-0 draw, which may bring the curtain down on Cristiano Ronaldo's outstanding international career, the newspaper notes.
Франція перемогла Португалію у чвертьфіналі Євро-2024 по пенальті06.07.24, 01:04