Confident Turkey stroll past Armenia

Turkey advanced to the play-offs in style by putting four unanswered goals past Armenia at the Ali Sami Yen Stadium to win Group 2 by four points from Ukraine.

Karabulut key
Beşiktaş JK striker Batuhan Karadeniz's double and Eren Güngör's strike gave the hosts a 3-0 half-time lead before Özer Hurmacı added the final flourish in the 56th minute. Beşiktaş's Aydın Karabulut, who had scored twice against the Czech Republic in last Friday's top-of-the-table showdown, played a key role here too with no fewer than three assists.

Karadeniz delivers
Turkey dominated the entire game with the visitors showing little resistance to the home side's charge. Karadeniz broke the deadlock midway through the opening period and, following Güngör's goal, he added his second moments before half-time. Hurmacı completed the scoring as Turkey cruised into the play-offs.

Trophy dream
Coach Hami Mandıralı said: "We wanted to win the match because we had lost the reverse fixture. My players showed their ability and their spirit, and we got the victory. Our aim now is to be successful in the play-offs and to reach the finals in Sweden – in fact, not only to reach them but also to take home the trophy. We have enough quality. If we can go there with a full-strength squad, we'll be able to show what Turkish players can do."