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Wales v Turkey
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Kick Off: Friday 6th September at 19:45
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Competition: Nations League
Familiar foes Wales and Turkey renew acquaintances at the Cardiff City Stadium in what has the potential to be an intriguing Nations League contest on Friday evening.
For Dragons supporters, Friday’s game provides the first opportunity to usher in a new era with former international star Craig Bellamy taking charge of Wales for the first time.
However, a test against a Turkey outfit that impressed at Euro 2024 should represent a stiff opening challenge for Bellamy and Wales in front of an expectant crowd in Cardiff.
Wales v Turkey Best Bets
Wales will kick Friday’s game off as slight underdogs at 2.63 and while a possible new manager bounce in Craig Bellamy’s first game in charge muddies things a little, it makes little sense to back the Dragons here.
Instead, preference is given to Turkey, who should still be riding a positive wave of optimism following their heralded performances at Euro 2024. The visitors’ squad is filled with emerging talent and in terms of individual ability, Turkey look stronger all over the pitch player-for-player.
Wales’ run of just six wins in 25 matches is difficult to ignore and on paper at least, Bellamy lacks the personnel to drive immediate change. Back Turkey’s class to shine through in Cardiff at a price of 2.60.
Arda Güler meanwhile, provides buckets of value at 1.80 to land at least one shot on target against Wales. The talented teen has started just once in La Liga for Real Madrid this season, though he clocked three shots on target on that runout against Valladolid, again highlighting how dangerous he can be in the final third.
Güler is likely to get the nod from the start against Wales on Friday and the winger, who had nine attempts at goal across five appearances at Euro 2020, can provide cutting edge again.
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📊 Wales Form and Stats
Wales chose to sack Rob Page in the summer when two dismal friendly performances against Gibraltar (0-0) and Slovakia (0-4) compounded the team’s failure to qualify for Euro 2024, replacing him with the untried Craig Bellamy.
Bellamy, who was a member of Vincent Kompany’s coaching staff at Anderlecht and then Burnley, will be tasked with raising standards after a run of just six wins from 25 international fixtures for Wales since June 2022.
First and foremost, Bellamy must find a way to squeeze more goals out of his Welsh team. They averaged just 1.25 goals per game during their last European Championship qualifying campaign and hit one or fewer goals in five of their last six assignments.
33-year-old Aaron Ramsey (21) and 32-year-old Kieffer Moore (12) are the only players in Bellamy’s first Wales squad who’ve scored double figure-goals at international level and the country’s newest generation still hasn’t made much of an impact in that direction.
The talent pool available to Bellamy is relatively shallow with just five members of Wales’ squad currently playing their club football in the Premier League.
High hopes remain for Tottenham’s Brennan Johnson, though the wide attacker has scored only three times in 28 appearances for his country so far.
📊 Turkey Form and Stats
Turkey earned plenty of plaudits for their spirited, dynamic performances at Euro 2024 and they were perhaps a little unfortunate to end their summer adventure in the competition’s quarter-final having won the xGF battle in their 2-1 loss to the Netherlands (1.30 to 1.00).
Italian coach Vincenzo Montella has been credited for Turkey’s improvement and though he has only been in charge of the Crescent Stars for 13 games, he has already delivered significant wins over Croatia, Germany, Czechia, and Austria during his tenure.
Turkey have been playing an entertaining brand of football under Montella’s instruction and they ranked sixth at Euro 2024 for shots attempted per 90 (14.40) and sixth again for total xGF accumulated in the competition (7.30) despite their exit at the quarter-final stage.
Seven of Turkey’s last eight games have featured over 2.5 goals while six of the same matches produced action at both ends. 100% of their fixtures at Euro 2024 meanwhile, also saw three or more goals, and more entertainment could be in the works in Wales this week.
Montella has plenty of individual talent to work with including Inter Milan star Hakan Çalhanoğlu and Benfica’s Orku Kokcu, however, teenage prodigies Kenan Yildiz and Arda Güler are the jewels in the Turkish crown.
19-year-old Juventus starlet Yildiz averaged 2.87 shots per 90 at the Euros while fellow 19-year-old Real Madrid wonderkid Arda Güler, who finished the tournament with a goal and two assists, averaged 2.38 shots p/90 in Germany. Both players have the talent to hurt Wales on Friday.
⚔️ Wales v Turkey Head-to-Head
Wales and Turkey were paired in the same qualification group (Group D) for the 2024 European Championships and the Crescent Stars had the better of it over the nations’ two encounters in the section, pocketing four of the six points on offer.
When the sides locked horns in Samsun in June 2023, Turkey made full use of home advantage, netting twice after the interval through Umut Nayir and Arda Guler in a cosy 2-0 triumph.
Turkey mustered 14 shots to Wales’ seven and controlled 77% of the possession in their victory, with the Dragons’ only attempt on target at the Samsun Yeni 19 Mayıs Stadyumu delivered by Harry Wilson.
The return fixture in Cardiff the following November was a closer run thing however, with the spoils shared after a 1-1 draw. Neco Williams gave the hosts an early five-minute lead before Turkey earned parity after the interval through a Yusuf Yazıcı’s penalty kick.
Turkey again dominated more of the ball (60%), however, Wales managed to counterattack with more precision and lodged ten attempts on goal (four on target) to their visitor’s nine (two on target).
Eight players were booked on an evening of hot tempers last November, so there might be some old scores to settle on Friday.
Tottenham’s Brennan Johnson was a thorn in Turkey’s side during last year’s 1-1 draw. The winger registered two attempts on target and three attempts overall in that contest.
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* I recommend waiting for confirmed team line-ups before placing any bets.
* All odds displayed correct at the time of publishing.
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