Muhammet feels Turkish frustration
Sunday, May 10, 2009
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Striker Muhammet Demir only recovered from a serious knee injury to lead Turkey's line a week before the finals and although their hopes of victory are over his performances have shown glimpses of what might have been.
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Turkey's 2-1 loss to the Netherlands on Saturday ended their hopes of winning the UEFA European Under-17 Championship but the performance of Muhammet Demir in Meuselwitz gave a glance of what might have been.
Knee operation
The Bursaspor striker made his mark in last year's event in Turkey, coming on as an injury-time substitute against the Netherlands, and scoring in a 3-0 win for the eventual semi-finalists. He also struck twice in all three of his nation's qualifying round matches in the autumn, putting him top of the goalscoring rankings in that stage, but a knee operation in February ruled him out of the Elite round and made him a major doubt even for these finals.
Long absence
"For three months I was unable to train," Muhammet told uefa.com, "and only one week before the tournament was I able to get back into training so I do not feel very fit." As a consequence, the forward was only used as a substitute in the opening 3-1 loss to Germany, but against the Netherlands he started even though coach Abdullah Ercan admitted Muhammet was "not fully fit". He proved a constant menace, pulling the scoreline back to 2-1." If I wasn't injured I would have provided the team with much more support, but it hasn't proved possible," he added, "but it is important to be with the team."
Terim support
Supporting Turkey from the stands in Meuselwitz on Saturday was senior national coach Fatih Terim. "We were very excited," Muhammet said. "It is very important for us as we know that Fatih Terim looks for young, talented players. But we didn't play well so maybe he didn't get a positive impression, but we were very excited."
World Cup hope
Now a veteran of two finals campaigns, Muhammet does not believe this year's qualifiers have been stronger than last season's, but put Turkey's fall down to "discipline and game strategy, not a lack of ability". The aim for Turkey now is to beat England in Gotha on Tuesday and earn third place in Group B which brings with a trip to the FIFA U-17 World Cup in Nigeria this autumn. "We are sad because we have not qualified," Muhammet said, "but we have spoken with each other about beating England and going to the World Cup. [It will be important] for me and the team to be fit and to show their ability in the World Cup."