Turkey vs Russia: Preview and Prediction

By

 Kenneth Offor

Turkey vs Russia
International Friendly.
Date: Wednesday; 31-August-2016
Kick-off: 19:15 UK
Venue: Antalya Arena (Turkey).

The Turkish National team will face off against Russian National team at new Antalya stadium Turkey in an international friendly game. Turkey left the Euro summer competition in the group stage, they secured just 3 points from 3 games. They only scored 2 goals, also they conceded 4 goals. This game will serve as a warm up game for the Turkish side before the World Cup qualifiers against Croatia on September 5th.

Russia left the Euro summer competition early like their host, but their plight seemed much worst. They finished the competition in group stage with just 1 point, having lost 2 matches and drew 1. Also Russia scored only 2 goals in the competition, while they conceded 6 goals. Russia are already qualified for the 2018 FIFA World Cup being the host nation.

Turkey vs Russia: Head to Head Statistics

Russia have never lost a game against Turkey, they have won their 2 previous games against Turkey. The two teams last played against each other in 1998, a game which ended 1-0 in favour of the Russians. Also they won in their first ever encounter in 1994 by the same margin.

Turkey vs Russia: Prediction

Russia are without a win in their last 6 games, which includes their bad outing during the European Championship. They have drawn 2 games and lost 4 games, but they hope for a change with new coach Stanislav Cherchesov.

Turkey have had a more decent record than their opponents, they have lost 3 of their last 6 games and won 6. The head coach Faith Terim will use this friendly game to assess his squad depth before playing against Croatia.

Turkey will likely field their best IX in the first half of the game for assessment, before trying out fringe players. I expect a competitive first half, also I expect Turkey to win the game at home.