Turkey v Netherlands background
Saturday, August 1, 2015
Article summary
Turkey will look to lever the Netherlands out of third place in Group A, while new Oranje coach Danny Blind aims to make it four qualifying away wins on the trot for his side.
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Turkey know a win can lift them above the Netherlands and into third place in Group A, with much hinging on the outcome of this UEFA EURO 2016 qualifier.
• Bruno Martins Indi is suspended following his red card in Thursday's 1-0 defeat by Iceland; Gregory van der Wiel is a yellow card away from a ban, as is Turkey's Gökhan Töre.
Previous meetings
• Klaas-Jan Huntelaar struck deep in added time to salvage a point for the Netherlands after Burak Yılmaz had put Turkey in front in the teams' first Group A encounter.
• Turkey's record in 11 matches against the Netherlands is now W2 D4 L5; those games include six FIFA World Cup qualifiers (W1 D1 L4) and four friendlies (W1 D2 L1).
• Louis van Gaal's Oranje beat Turkey 2-0 home and away in 2014 World Cup qualifying; Fatih Terim was in charge for the fixture in Turkey.
Form guide
• Turkey have yet to lose – or concede a goal – in a competitive match staged on 6 September: their four games on this date have ended in a 0-0 draw against Austria (2011), a 2-0 win against Malta (2006), a 3-0 victory over Liechtenstein (2003) and a 2-0 triumph against Hungary (1995).
• A 2-0 success in Latvia in their most recent Group A away fixture halted a run of two straight qualifying defeats on the road for the Netherlands.
Trivia and links
• Netherlands midfielder Wesley Sneijder currently plays in Turkey for Galatasaray AŞ while Robin van Persie has signed for Fenerbahçe SK.
• This is the Netherlands' first away game under new coach Danny Blind; he replaced Guus Hiddink following the latter's resignation. Hiddink was Turkey coach from 2010 to 2011, resigning after failing to lead his side to the finals of UEFA EURO 2012.
