European Championship
June 20, 2008
Croatia
(1)1 - 1(3)
Turkey
Watch Live on: ESPN
2:45 PM ET, June 20, 2008
Ernst Happel Stadion
Last 5 Matches
Croatia: D-W-W-W
Turkey: L-D-W-W-L
Turkey win 3-1 on penalties
Join us for Holland Russia tomorrow night. I've been Chris Murphy, and you, you have been the football loving public. Ta ra for now.- What a cruel game football can be. Croatia deserved to win that game, on their approach to it alone, and when they scored in the 92nd minute they must have thought they were through (I certainly did!) but now they're out. Astonishing.
- You can't say they deserved it, and they might struggle to field a team in the semi-final given all their injuries and suspensions, but my word Turkey don't know when they are beaten! The Croatian players are crushed...
- Petric misses! Rustu saves and Turkey are through!
Croatia must score. Petric steps up...
- Hamit Altintop scores! Croatia 1-3 Turkey!
- Rakitic misses! Croatia 1-2 Turkey!
- Semih scores! Croatia 1-2 Turkey.
Semih comes forward.
- Srna scores! Croatia 1-1 Turkey!
- Arda scores! Croatia 0-1 Turkey!
Arda for Turkey.
- Modric misses! Amazing!
Croatia will take the first pen. Modric comes forward...
- What is it with Turkey and comebacks! We've sat through nearly 120 minutes of turgid football then witnessed two minutes of incredible drama. The full time whistle went as soon as the ball hit the net. Penalties to follow!
- Unbelievably amazing!! A long punt downfield breaks to Semih who has whacked it into the roof of the net!!
- GOAL! Semih has equalised!! Turkey are level!
Poor old Rustu! He's looked uncertain all night and now he's stumbled into no-mans land right at the death! Fatih Terim is apoplectic.
- Amazing! Modric goes on another run, Rustu came wandering out as the ball broke and as Modric swung it in Klasnic nods into the net from six yards out!
- GOAL! Croatia have won it! Klasnic!!
Ugur's ball in, Gokhan Zan meets it with a poor header. Penalties loom large.
Turkey corner. Nihat off. Good news.
Turkey change. Nihat limps off and Gokdeniz sprints on looking all purposeful and serious.
Turkey win a free kick wide on the right. Nihat's free kick is about the worst I've seen. It's so deep no-one can get near it, then trickles out for a throw in.
The game is a bit stretched now but can either side exploit that fact?
Simunic looks riddled with fatigue. He dithers under pressure very nearly allowing Nihat to profit.
Arda has wasted a chance to cross. Croatia got themselves in a right mess at the back but Arda couldn't exploit it with a decent ball in.
Srna has his socks down to his ankles. Old school.
If only the quality of the game matched the fervour in the stands. It'd be 7-7 by now if it did. The game has got even worse sadly.
Very cool from Emre Asik as he nods back to his keeper from ten yards out! That could have ended in tears one feels.
A yellow from Emre Asik. Guess what? He'll be banned from the semi too.
Modric attempts a slide rule pass through four defenders for the onrushing Petric but Emre Asik is in the way.
We're off again. ET will finish at 125 by the way.
- HT in ET.
Sensing a shift in the sands, Turkey's fans are churning out some right chanting.
And now its Croatia who can't keep hold of the ball. They are forever going back to Pletikosa int nets.
Croatia are tiring, and Turkey's subs are having a bit of an impact.
Tuncay has hit one just wide! Turkey put a string of passes together, Arda lays it off and the Boro man smashes one narronwly past the post.
Semih looks a little bit more lively than his colleagues as he fires in another shot at goal. Its dipping, but not viciously enough to get under the bar.
A brief moment of danger for Croatia as a Semih shot ricochets into the box and nearly presents Nihat with a chance.
Klasnic scored the winner against Poland of course. Maybe he's got more of a killer instinct than O*ic.
Ivan Klasnic replaces Olic, who in my opinion, is crap.
Correct me if I'm wrong but I think that last post mentioning Pletikosa was the first time I've name-checked the Croatian keeper in the entire game. That's got to tell you something about Turkey and their apporach eh?
Bilic is calling his subs back. Change imminent.
A poor corner allows Pranjic to clear at the near post.
I spoke too soon! A great dribble from Tuncay gets him to the byline then Pletikosa has to parry away his cross. Corner.
Turkey go forward but produce nothing. Oh wait, Ugur, to Balta, Kovac clears. Back with Sabri, Arda, Sabri, Emre Asik. No, nothing doing.
Pranjic swings in a cross and Olic appeals for handball as Emre Asik challenged him.
Or once. I think I mean once.
Extra time begins. Remember, 15 minutes each way, twice.
- Olic has a final chance after taking down Kovac's volley and that is that. We'll have 30 more, turgid, minutes no doubt. Boo!
Arda gets space on the right and crosses well but Simunic is there, like he has been all night.
Srna curls it over the wall and although Rustu fumbles the bouncing ball, he gets it at the second attempt.
Tuncay gives away a free kick as the fourth official announces three minutes added on. The free kick is left of centre, 40 yards out.
Another chance! Modric gets an early cross in and Olic gets a toe end on it, but its straight at Rustu!
It looks like extra time people...
Turkey win a corner and as the ball comes out Altintop smahes in a volley which is blocked, then Croatia break and Ugur is booked for hauling down Petric off the ball.
Olic has wasted a great chance! He got down the channel, Croatia had three-on-three but instead of knocking it back post where Srna was completely free, Olic tries to beat Zan and fails horribly.
Altintop hammers it before the wall intervenes. He can certainly strike a ball that lad.
Turkey win a free kick half way inside Croatia's half.
What a save! Srna whacks it towards the top corner and the ancient keeper Rustu pulls off a smashing one-handed save.
Srna to take....
Petric goes on a mazy run before Gokhan Zan sticks out a leg and brings him down. Cynical. He should be booked for that.
Nothing to report. A bit of noise from the stands. That's it.
If there was any justice, Luka Modric would score the winning goal in the next ten minutes because he has been by far and away the game's stand out player.
Rustu makes a corner this time and gets a punch on it. Tuncay bashed into him and Turkey have a free kick.
Immediate results for Turkey as for the first time in the game they get men forward in support, but Nihat's ball to Tuncay is poor.
Turkey are bringing Semih on; Mehmet Topal goes off. A striker for a midfielder. Hmm, we live in hope.
His second corner is equally rubbish. Rubbish rubbish rubbish.
Srna's corner is poor, but he gets another chance.
Croatia have a corner! Low and behold!
On the pitch, Olic meets a Pranjic cross and his header goes three yards wide.
- The fire alarm has gone off! But we are to disregard it apparently. Don't panic!
Well, I think we all need a sit down after that, as the tannoy announces another fire alarm may be imminent. If it all goes quiet, you know why...
- A chance! Lordy lordy a chance! A lovely one-two between Rikitic and Olic offers the midfielder a shooting opportunity but he blzes over the bar. An awful finish.
A cracking run from Modric results in a threaded pass through for Olic, who had chosen that precise moment to turn his back on the play. Idiot.
Boring.
Arda goes down but gets a look of disdain from the ref, and half of Europe.
There's only been one 0-0 draw in the competition so far, but Turkey are doing their best to register another one.
Our commentators are saying the heat might have something to do with the poor game. Apparently the temperature is still in 80s. Well woop-de-doo.
Niko Kranjcar is off, Mladen Petric is on.
Croatia are preparing a change. Petric is coming on.
We have a (disallowed) goal! The ball is in the net but Olic was two yards off when Srna's ball came to him. It should have been allowed to stand just to liven things up a bit.
That substitution was announced four times. Presumably once in English, once in Turkish, Croatian and German. Yes, the game is that dull.
CKR's nightmare is over. He's replaced by Ugur Boral.
Half an hour left. Which one of these sides wants it more?
Lovely work from Modric, he looks like a very good player. Well done Spurs.
CKR holds his head in his hands after Simunic crashed into the back of him, fell over then got a free kick.
Chance for Kranjcar as Modric plays him through. He toe pokes it goalwards under pressure from three defenders but Rustu is equal to his lacklustre shot.
The referee has a little word in Tuncay's ear because he played on after the whistle had gone for a foul.
Kranjcar takes his eye off the ball and a promising looking Croatia move is brought to a premature end. He's not had a great tournament the Pompey man.
Then Rustu is left stranded after aborting an attempt to claim the corner. Kovac's header flashes wide. Another let off for the veteran stopper.
Now Rakitic nearly gets past Sabri as the right back went walkies. He eventually gets back and Croatia have a corner.
I think we can safely deduce from that exchange that Rustu is a bit massively dodgy these days!
- What on earth has happened there?! Olic bears down on goal as the ball bounced over the top and Rustu half came out but didn't claim. Then as Olic's header was partially blocked he somehow managed to get the rebound and nod it goalwards even though he was practically off the pitch!
Arda and Simunic are down after they collided. The Turk is booked for his follow through, which was a bit studdy, and is carded. He'll miss the semi final too if they go through. Two down, six to go.
It looks like Turkey are trying to strangle the game. Which is strange seeing as how dangerous and fluid they looked when they were forced to go for it against the Czechs.
Turkey enjoy a spell of possession but they're offering nothing up front. Someone needs to whisper in their ear that this is the Euro 2008 quarter-finals.
We begin again...
- Half time. A bright start to the game, but a slightly dull end to it. Let's hope for more action like the first half of the first half, throughout the entire second half. Got it? Good.
Two minutes added...
Tuncay goes down after it looked like HE was the one who jumped in dangerously. The Boro man looks in a bit of pain.
A lovely break from Croatia sees Corluka, Modric and Srna all involved before Tuncay makes a vital tackle to prevent Srna having a run on goal.
Let's have a goal before half time please.
A smashing idea from Kranjcar who spins then pings one wide for Srna, but again the ball zips off the turf and just eludes the winger.
CKR has a kick, and what an awful one it was. He fluffs a simple ball to Sabri on the wing and Croatia have possesion.
Tuncay spreads play wide for CKR - who has hardly touched the ball this half - but it flies off the turf and out for a throw.
Better from Turkey, a nice spell of possession ends with Mehmet Topal blasting one from 30 yards narrowly wide of the post. Great hit!
Tuncay is howling for a pen after colliding with Simunic in the area. It was a clumsy challenge, and a certain free-kick outside the area, but the ref was never going to give a spot kick.
The game has gone into its shell after a bright opening half an hour.
Altintop burst towards Croatia's back four, and had Nihat in support but failed to pick any of the available options in favour of falling over.
Lovely combination between Modric and Kranjcar but the latter's ball for Olic isn't a great one, to say the least.
Tuncay gets in down the left channel but is barged off it by Corluka. Only Nihat was in support though.
Arda wins a free-kick from Nico Kovac and Turkey have a chance to get good ball in the box. Or play it short, like they've just done, completely contradicting me in the process.
Rustu pumps a long ball up towards the 5ft 8in Nihat who is up against four relative giants. Not the most clever tactic I feel.
Hakan Balta gets a good tackle in on Srna but then confuses himself with a trick and the ball runs out of play.
Turkey have hardly had a kick in the last ten minutes. Croatia have been completely dominant since the Olic blunder-miss.
Olic gets down the channel and digs out a smashing cross for the onrushing Srna. The ref has penalised the right sided player, even though he failed to meet it.
Tuncay gets a yellow card for leading into an aerial challenge with his forearm and will miss the semi if Turkey get through.
A raking crossfield ball from Rakitic runs out of play and Bilic isn't happy.
Well done Rustu! Pranjic crosses and Olic was about to nod into the net (or probably wide) but the veteran keeper is out smartly to punch.
Not for long though as Pranjic again raids down the right. He hangs onto the ball for far too long though and his cross finds Turkish players back in numbers.
The injury forces a bit of a lull in the game.
Nico Kranjcar has just kicked Emre Asik in the face as they both went for a ball. One went with head, one went with foot and a bit of claret is visible. Ooh, nasty.
That chance has sparked an excellent spell from Croatia. They look threatening all of a sudden.
Kranjcar spins and swings in a great ball that Olic gets a very wild header to, as if illustrating my previous point.
What a chance! Croatia should be ahead. He's a trier is Olic, but far from classy or clinical. He was only FOUR yards out for flip's sake!
- What a miss from Olic! Modric gets round the back, slides in a fantastic ball across the face of goal and Olic has hit the bar from four yards out! Nico Kovac followed up and headed over the bar!
First sign of fluidity from Croatia as Pranjic and Olic combine but Sabri makes a good tackle, unbelievably.
Arda is penalised for handball inside the area.
Arda and Balta combine neatly but Srna nips in. Turkey look bang up for this...
The brighter start has come from Turkey it has to be said. Croatia can't get hold of the ball at present.
A smashing block from Nico Kovac denies Altintop's shot getting anywhere near goal. He took a ball rifling at 90mph in the ribs though. I don't need to tell you he's down.
The referee has given Turkey a free-kick when it never was. Nihat's first touch on the edge of the box was poor, allowing Nico Kovac to win the ball, then take the man. For some reason though, the ref blows and Turkey have a great chance.
Srna tries a ridiculous dying swan routine in front of the linesman but he ain't havin' none of it.
Altintop tries another punt after some neat control from Arda. Simunic is in the way to block this time.
Turkey delay pumping the ball into the box when they had three good chances to do so, then CKR mistakenly passes to Sabri, who loses the ball.
Nice dummy from Tuncay to get rid of Nico Kovac but his left-foot shot is weak. Very weak.
Another wobble from Sabri then, and much hesitation from Rustu. Not an ideal start for the Turks.
Great chance for Croatia! Rustu and Sabri dither and as Srna gets round the back and cuts back for Olic, Hakan Balta makes a crucial challenge to prevent a certain goal.
Colin KR (now to be known as CKR) swings in a cross from the right but it is too deep for any of his pals, but as Turkey work the ball around nicely Altintop smashes one just wide. My, that was travelling.
Modric wins a corner after picking up a rank pass from Turkish right back Sabri. He lets fly but the ball hits his team-mate Olic and goes out for a goal kick.
Croatia signal their hunger as two of their players sprint to get to a ball on the left flank! When they finally decide who's going to have it there are plenty of defenders around to crowd them out.
Arda Turan rummages down the left as Turkey begin brightly, Luka Modric is in to intercept his cross though. Looks like Colin Kazim Richards (henceforth to be referred to as Colin KR) will start wide right.
We're off...
So, a familiar face in goal for Turkey; Rustu! You know, he with the black paint beneath his eyes. He makes his 117th appearance for Turkey tonight, but at 35 has he still got it? We're about to find out, after a rousing rendition of both anthems of course.
Apologies for the brief, and even worse, banter than usual. Myself and soccernet's John Brewin have just been stood on the street outside the building for 45 minutes thanks to a rogue fire alarm. Not ideal preparation my friends.
So, nine changes for Croatia who bring back all their big guns, Turkey have fielded whoever is fit or not suspended. Our soccernet colleague at the game, Dale Johnson, has mentioned that all but two Turkey players are on one yellow card. If they go through they may only have about six players left to field!
And injury and suspension riddled Turkey: Rustu, Altintop, Zan, Asik, Balta, Topal, Sarioglu, Sanli, Turan, Kazim-Richards and Nihat. Subs from: Zengin, Cetin, Emre, Senturk, Karadeniz, Metin, Gungor, Boral, Akman, Erdinc.
The teams, starting with Croatia: Pletikosa, Corluka, Robert Kovac, Simunic, Pranjic, Srna, Modric, Nico Kovac, Rakitic, Kranjcar, Olic. Subs from: Galinovic, Simic, Vejic, Vukojevic, Kalinic, Pokrivac, Knezevic, Leko, Klasnic, Petric and Runje.
Both sides won last time out, Croatia fielding a second-string team who defeated a very poor Poland. Turkey, of course, produced a thrilling comeback to score three goals in 15 minutes to dump the Czech Republic out. Let's hope its a humdinger.
Welcome one and all to the second quarter-final in an ever blossoming Euro 2008 tournament. Tonight's encounter pits the darlings of the competition so far, Croatia, against the plucky comeback kids from Turkey. At stake is a semi-final clash with Germany.
- Join us at 1945BST for live commentary on the second quarter-final as the irresistible force take on the immovable object. Well, Croatia v Turkey more like.
