Turkey eliminated from the World Cup after just two rounds: Arda Güler apologized to the fans after the defeat to Paraguay
The Turkish national football team suffered one of its heaviest blows at the 2026 World Cup, after a 0:1 defeat to Paraguay in Santa Clara also cost it any mathematical chance of reaching the knockout stage. Vincenzo Montella's team arrived at the tournament with high expectations, relying on a generation in which Arda Güler, Kenan Yildiz, Hakan Çalhanoglu and a number of players from Europe's strongest leagues stand out in particular, but after two rounds it remained without a point and without a goal scored. According to FIFA's report, the decisive goal for Paraguay was scored by Matías Galarza after just 64 seconds of play, which at that moment was the fastest goal at this edition of the World Cup. Turkey then spent almost the entire match chasing an equalizer, and from the closing stages of the first half it also had an extra player, but even enormous statistical dominance was not enough for a goal.
The defeat is particularly painful because Turkey, according to ESPN data and AP reports, sent 32 shots toward Paraguay's goal, had a clear advantage in possession and took 12 corner kicks. Despite such pressure, the Paraguayan defense held out until the end and preserved the minimal lead that changed the picture of Group D. Turkey lost to Australia 0:2 in the first round, and the second consecutive defeat meant the end of hopes that the national team could join the fight for a place among the 32 best teams of the tournament. After the match, The Guardian stated that Turkey, because of head-to-head records and the schedule in the group, cannot finish higher than fourth place even if it beats the United States in the final round. That left the last group match for Montella's team only as an attempt to improve the impression.
Güler: The players are sad and ashamed
The heaviest emotions after the match were summed up by Arda Güler, the young Real Madrid midfielder and one of the players from whom the most had been expected ahead of the tournament. According to a report by the Spanish daily AS, after the elimination Güler said that the players are very sad, that they feel ashamed and that they apologize to the Turkish public for results that were nowhere near expectations. In the same statement, he admitted that the national team players play for big clubs, but that they did not show it on the pitch when it was needed most. He particularly emphasized that the fact Turkey did not score a goal in the first two matches is unacceptable for a team with such ambitions.
Güler's reaction carried additional weight because, ahead of the tournament, he had been the very symbol of optimism surrounding the Turkish national team. After the 2024 European Championship, where Turkey made a strong impression and reached the quarterfinals, it was expected that the young core of the team could make another step forward on the world stage. Turkey's return to the World Cup after 24 years, which AP also confirmed in its report, carried a strong emotional charge, but it ended before the national team even reached a decisive match for progression. For that reason, the defeat to Paraguay is described in international reports not only as a poor result, but as a major sporting failure by an ambitious generation.
An early goal changed the entire match
Paraguay took advantage of practically the first serious situation of the match against Turkey. FIFA stated in its report that Galarza scored after only 64 seconds, while AP described how the Atlanta United midfielder sent the ball into the net with his left foot from a distance of approximately 25 meters. That goal immediately forced Turkey to attack, but at the same time it allowed Paraguay to steer the match toward a scenario in which discipline, the defensive block and patience became more important than possession. Turkey was already creating pressure in the first half, and one of its best chances came through Mert Müldür, whose header, according to the AP report, struck the frame of the goal.
The match changed direction even further in first-half stoppage time, when Miguel Almirón received a red card. AP reported that the Paraguayan midfielder became the first player at this World Cup to be sent off for covering his mouth during a verbal confrontation, under a new rule introduced for the tournament. After reviewing the footage, referee Ivan Barton showed Almirón a red card, so Paraguay had to play the entire second half with ten men. In such circumstances, Turkey had an almost ideal competitive framework for a comeback, but its attack remained without the final precision.
The statistics were enormous, but there was no goal
Turkey dominated almost every measurable indicator, but the match against Paraguay became an example of the difference between pressure and efficiency. ESPN's statistics state that Turkey had 78.5 percent possession, 32 attempts on goal, five shots on target and 12 corners, while Paraguay had far fewer attacking situations. FOX Sports also recorded expected goals in Turkey's favor in its statistical review, which further underlines how much danger Montella's team was producing without the final result. Still, the footballing value of such dominance remains limited when it is not converted into a goal, and Turkey remained on zero for the second match in a row.
Paraguay, on the other hand, played a match that after the final whistle was described through endurance and collective defending. AP carried a statement from Andrés Cubas, who emphasized the effort of the group and the fight with one player fewer until the end of the match. Paraguay's goalkeeper had to react several times under great pressure, the defensive line cleared balls from the penalty area, and Gustavo Alfaro's team accepted that it would spend most of the second half deep in its own half. This was not a performance in which Paraguay controlled the ball, but a match in which it controlled the space in front of its own goal and withstood all Turkish surges.
Montella under pressure after attacking collapse
Head coach Vincenzo Montella admitted the scale of the disappointment after the elimination. According to AS, Montella said he was very sorry because expectations were high both within the national team and around it, while also emphasizing that the team had taken a total of 65 shots in the first two matches but had not scored a single goal. Such statistics opened the question of whether the problem was not only a lack of luck, but also the structure of the attack, the choice of final solutions and the psychological pressure that grew minute by minute. Against Australia, Turkey also had plenty of the ball and a large number of attempts, but it faced the same pattern: dominance without finishing and punishment for defensive lapses.
In its report on the Australia and Turkey match, FIFA recalled that Australian goalkeeper Patrick Beach made eight saves on his national-team debut in the first round, which shows that Turkey was not without chances even then. However, two consecutive matches without a goal at a World Cup can hardly be explained only by opposing goalkeepers or circumstances. Montella's system, which relied on a technically strong midfield, wide positions and attacking initiative, did not find enough clear finishes against the organized defenses of Australia and Paraguay. For that reason, the consequences of the elimination are likely to go beyond the result in the group itself and open a debate about the direction of the national team after the tournament.
Group D received a clearer outcome
Turkey's defeat also significantly changed the battle in Group D. AP reported that the United States secured progression to the knockout stage and first place in the group with a 2:0 victory against Australia, and Paraguay's triumph over Turkey further strengthened that outcome. After that victory, Paraguay remained in the fight to continue the competition, while Australia and Paraguay will decide second place and a potential place through the ranking of third-placed teams in the final round. According to FIFA's explanation of the 2026 World Cup format, the two best national teams from each of the 12 groups advance, along with the eight best third-placed teams, which means that third place can also be enough to continue the tournament.
For Turkey, such an expanded structure did not help because the problem lay in the head-to-head records within the group. Even a victory over the United States in the final round would not be enough for it to overtake at least one of the national teams that had already beaten it. If Australia stayed ahead of it, Turkey would be weaker because of the defeat in the first round; if it finished level on points with Paraguay, the defeat in Santa Clara would be decisive. That gave the early elimination an even heavier form: the national team dropped out of the race before the end of the group, even though the tournament format offers more paths toward the knockout stage than ever before.
Great expectations turned into a painful lesson
Turkey came to the 2026 World Cup with a squad that seemed talented enough to many observers to advance from the group. Ahead of the tournament, the technical quality of Güler, the energy of Kenan Yildiz, the experience of Çalhanoglu and the depth of a roster in which numerous players are accustomed to a high European level were emphasized. Before the tournament, the TFF published an extended list of players that confirmed the depth of the squad, and the very fact of returning to the world stage after a long absence created an atmosphere of great anticipation. But the World Cup showed that reputation, possession and the number of attempts are not enough if matches are not managed coolly and if mistakes are punished immediately.
In sporting terms, Turkey must now play its final group match against the United States without the competitive objective it had before the start of the tournament. Still, that match will not be unimportant for the players and coaching staff because it will be viewed as a test of character after elimination. Güler, according to AS, said that in the continuation of his international career he would do everything to make this tournament forgotten, which shows that the defeat is being experienced in the dressing room as a burden that will be carried even after returning from the competition. For a generation that was supposed to confirm the new rise of Turkish football, early elimination in North America will remain a warning of how quickly great expectations can become great pressure.
Paraguay, by contrast, leaves the same match with renewed belief and a clear goal ahead of the duel with Australia. Galarza's early goal, Almirón's red card and Turkey's almost one-way pressure created a match of dramatic contrasts, but the final result remained the only piece of information that decides the standings. Turkey had the ball, the shots and the numerical advantage, but Paraguay had the goal and the defense that preserved it. That is why this match will be remembered in Turkish football as an evening of missed opportunities, and in the Paraguayan national team as a victory that restored hope in the tournament.
Sources:
- FIFA – report on the Turkey – Paraguay match and the detail about Matías Galarza's fastest goal (link)
- Associated Press – report on Paraguay's 1:0 victory, Turkey's elimination, the early goal and Miguel Almirón's red card (link)
- Associated Press – explanation of the red card for covering the mouth during a verbal confrontation (link)
- ESPN – statistics from the Turkey – Paraguay match, including possession, shots and corners (link)
- FOX Sports – statistical review of the Turkey – Paraguay match, including expected goals and team indicators (link)
- AS – statements by Arda Güler and Vincenzo Montella after Turkey's elimination (link)
- FIFA – official explanation of the 2026 World Cup format and progression to the round of 32 (link)
- FIFA – report on the Australia – Turkey 2:0 match from the first round of Group D (link)
- The Guardian – context of the outcome in Group D and confirmation that Turkey can no longer progress because of head-to-head records (link)
- Turkish Football Federation TFF – official publication of the expanded list of national-team players for the 2026 World Cup (link)