Türkiye heads to Bologna still searching for first points

Türkiye's national football team will face Italy in their fourth match of League A Group 1 in the UEFA Nations League on Monday (Oct. 5).

The match kicks off at 9:45 p.m. in Türkiye (8:45 p.m. in Bologna) at Renato Dall'Ara Stadium in Bologna, northern Italy. ATV, a Turkish television channel, will broadcast the match live.

Poland's Szymon Marciniak will referee the match. His assistants will be Tomasz Listkiewicz and Adam Kupsik, while Karol Arys will serve as the fourth official.

In the group's other match, France and Belgium meet in Paris at 9:45 p.m. Türkiye time.

Players of Türkiye react after Italy scores a goal during the UEFA Nations League A Group 1 match between Türkiye and Italy at Yuzuncu Yil Ataturk Stadium in Bursa, Türkiye on September 28, 2026. (AA Photo)

Türkiye seek first points

Türkiye lost their first three matches in the group and have not yet collected a point. They lost 1-0 to France in Kocaeli, in northwestern Türkiye, and 4-1 to Italy in Bursa, also in northwestern Türkiye. They then lost 3-0 away to Belgium.

Italy beat Türkiye in Bursa, lost 2-0 at home to Belgium and drew 1-1 away to France.

Türkiye will complete their group fixtures in November with an away match against France and a home match against Belgium in Izmir, on Türkiye's Aegean coast.

Türkiye national football team players and coaching staff take part in a training session in Liege, Belgium, Oct. 4, 2026, ahead of their match against Italy. (AA Photo)

Türkiye's provisional squad

Türkiye's 29-player provisional squad under coach Vincenzo Montella is as follows:

Goalkeepers: Altay Bayindir (Celta Vigo), Muhammed Sengezer (RAMS Basaksehir), Okan Kocuk (Samsunspor), Ugurcan Cakir (Galatasaray)

Defenders: Abdulkerim Bardakci and Eren Elmali (Galatasaray), Adil Demirbag (TUMOSAN Konyaspor), Emirhan Topcu (Besiktas), Ferdi Kadioglu (Brighton), Merih Demiral (Al Ahli), Ozan Kabak (Hoffenheim), Samet Akaydin and Mustafa Eskihellac (Trabzonspor), Zeki Celik (Juventus), Yusuf Akcicek (Al-Hilal)

Midfielders: Ismail Yuksek and Bartug Elmaz (Fenerbahce), Demir Ege Tiknaz (Braga), Melih Kabasakal (Trabzonspor), Salih Ozcan (Besiktas), Emirhan Ilkhan (Torino)

Forwards: Aral Simsir (Trabzonspor), Deniz Gul and Yunus Akgun (Galatasaray), Can Uzun (Eintracht Frankfurt), Ilhan Fakili (Besiktas), Irfan Can Kahveci, Kerem Akturkoglu and Oguz Aydin (Fenerbahce)

Can Uzun (L) of Turkiye in action against Giacomo Raspadori (10) of Italy during the UEFA Nations League A Group 1 match between Turkiye and Italy at Yuzuncu Yil Ataturk Stadium in Bursa, Türkiye on September 28, 2026. (AA Photo)

Italy's provisional squad

Italy's provisional squad under coach Roberto Mancini includes the following players:

Goalkeepers: Marco Carnesecchi (Atalanta), Gianluigi Donnarumma (Manchester City), Massimo Pessina (Bologna), Guglielmo Vicario (Juventus)

Defenders: Honest Ahanor (Crystal Palace), Alessandro Bastoni (Inter), Riccardo Calafiori (Arsenal), Diego Coppola (Paris FC), Giovanni Di Lorenzo (Napoli), Federico Dimarco (Inter), Daniele Ghilardi (Roma), Michael Kayode (Brentford), Eddy Kouadio (Monza), Gianluca Mancini (Roma), Giorgio Scalvini (Atalanta)

Midfielders: Nicolo Barella (Inter), Bryan Cristante (Roma), Issa Doumbia (Sporting), Nicolo Fagioli (Fiorentina), Davide Frattesi (Lazio), Rolando Mandragora (Torino), Alessandro Romano (Cagliari), Sandro Tonali (Tottenham)

Forwards: Nicolo Cambiaghi (Bologna), Francesco Pio Esposito (Inter), Sebastiano Esposito (Sassuolo), Samuele Inacio (Borussia Dortmund), Moise Kean (Como), Daniel Maldini (Cagliari), Giacomo Raspadori (Atalanta), Gianluca Scamacca (Atalanta), Antonio Vergara (Napoli), Nicolo Zaniolo (Udinese), Mohamed Ali Zoma (Nurnberg)

October 04, 2026 03:25 PM GMT+03:00