Spain secured their place in the 2026 World Cup finals by drawing with Turkey (2-2) in the match that brought them together on Tuesday evening at the “La Cartuja” stadium in Seville, as part of the sixth round of European qualifiers.
Spain’s goals were scored by “Dani Olmo” and “Mikel Oyarzabal” in the (4th, 62nd) minutes, while Turkey’s goals were scored by “Deniz Gül” and “Salih Özcan” in the (42nd, 54th) minutes.
With this draw, the Spanish national team reached 16 points, topping Group Five, to officially book its place in the World Cup, while the Turkish national team raised its score to 13 points in second place, and qualifies for the European play-offs.
Only four minutes had passed before the Spanish national team translated its dominance into an early goal by “Dani Olmo”, who exploited a ball inside the six-yard area and shot it with his right, announcing the home team’s lead.
This goal ignited the enthusiasm of the Spanish national team, so it launched more attacks, the most prominent of which was a shot by “Fabian Ruiz” in the ninth minute that collided with the defense, then an attempt by “Oyarzabal” in the fifteenth minute that did not shake the net.
“Alex Garcia” also showed his presence with a distant shot in the sixteenth minute, while “Oyarzabal” missed another opportunity from close range after only four minutes.
Despite the almost complete Spanish control, “Yeremy Pino” appeared in turn in the 24th minute with a dangerous attempt that the Turkish defense cleared, before “Dani Olmo” tried his luck from a distance in the 30th minute, but the goalkeeper “Altay Bayindir” was on time, then “Olmo” returned with another attempt after one minute, but it was met with the same save.
The Turkish national team appeared for the first time in a serious manner in the 34th minute through a shot by “Orkun Kökçü”, but things turned completely in the 42nd minute when “Deniz Gül” exploited confusion inside the penalty area after a corner kick and managed to adjust the score with a goal from close range, shocking the Spanish fans after a series of missed opportunities.
Before the end of the first half, Spain pressed to regain the lead, so “Merino” shot a dangerous ball in the 44th minute that the defense cleared, then “Cubarsi” rose with a header that “Bayindir” saved, before the goalkeeper cleared a new opportunity from “Fabian Ruiz” in the 45th minute.
The Turkish national team started the second half with clear activity with an attempt by “Çelik” in the 49th minute, and a few minutes later, “Irfan Kahveci” almost added Turkey’s second goal, but “Unai Simón” was present.
In the 53rd minute, “Yilmaz” launched a powerful shot that “Simón” cleared with his fingertips, but the Spanish steadfastness did not last long, as “Salih Özcan” surprised everyone with a wonderful shot from outside the area in the 54th minute that settled in the net, completing the Turkish team’s comeback and becoming ahead with two goals to one.
Spain did not give up, and “Oyarzabal” completed the mission and scored the second goal for the Matador with a shot, exploiting a close ball that brought the match back to a draw.
The Turkish national team continued its threat through “Yilmaz”, who tried his luck in the 67th minute, then through “Müldür” in the 72nd minute with a shot that “Simón” cleared with stability.
In the last minutes, “Ferran Torres” searched for the winning goal with two attempts, the first in the 81st minute passed next to the post, and the second in the 88th minute did not find its way to the net.
The Turkish players also tried to surprise the Spanish goal, but without any real benefit.
“Fermin López” scored a goal for Spain in the 96th minute, but the referee canceled it for offside, and the match ended in a positive draw.
Match formation
“Luis de la Fuente” relied on a relatively different formation for the Spanish national team, as he pushed “Unai Simón” in goalkeeping in front of a four-man defense that included “Marcos Llorente” in the right-back position, alongside “Cubarsi” and “Laporte” in the heart of the defense, while “Marc Cucurella” occupied the left flank.
In the midfield, “Alex Garcia” appeared next to “Fabian Ruiz”, in an attempt to strengthen control of the ball and give the team greater ability to build.
As for the attacking line, it included “Yeremy Pino”, “Mikel Merino” and “Dani Olmo” behind the mobile striker “Oyarzabal”.
This formation came after “De la Fuente” made four changes from the last Georgia match, most notably relying on “Llorente” as a right-back instead of “Pedro Porro” and pushing “Alex Garcia” in the middle instead of (“Zubimendi”), in addition to the appearance of “Yeremy Pino” (“Ferran Torres”) and “Dani Olmo” (“Alex Baena”) in the attacking third to increase vitality and speed in moving the game.
Luis de la Fuente, the coach of Spain, chose the starting lineup as follows:
Goalkeeping: “Unai Simón”
Defense: “Marc Cucurella” – “Aymeric Laporte” – “Pau Cubarsi” – “Marcos Llorente”
Midfield: “Alex Garcia” – “Mikel Merino” – “Fabian Ruiz”
Attack: “Dani Olmo” – “Mikel Oyarzabal” – “Yeremy Pino”
On the other hand, Vincenzo Montella, the coach of the Turkish national team, announced the following formation:
Goalkeeping: “Altay Bayindir”
Defense: “Çelik”, “Demiral”, “Söyüncü”, “Kadıoğlu”
Midfield: “Kökçü”, “Kahveci”, “Özcan”
Attack: “Deniz Gül”, “Yılmaz”, “Akaydin”
“Vincenzo Montella” chose to make extensive changes to Turkey’s formation, as he decided to make eight changes at once compared to the previous formation, to start the match with “Altay Bayindir” in the goal, and in front of him a four-man defense led by “Çelik”, “Demiral”, “Söyüncü” and “Kadıoğlu”.
In the midfield, he relied on “Orkun Kökçü” alongside “Kahveci” and “Özcan”, while the trio “Deniz Gül”, “Yılmaz” and “Akaydin” advanced to lead the front line.
Only three players maintained their place in the starting lineup, namely “Çelik”, “Demiral” and “Kadıoğlu”, in a clear indication of “Montella’s” desire to rest a number of the team’s stars before the play-off match.
For this reason, prominent names such as “Arda Güler”, “Kenan Yıldız”, “Aktürkoğlu” and “Çalhanoğlu” were absent, as the coach preferred not to risk players threatened with suspension or who need to maintain their physical readiness for the upcoming crucial stage.
With these changes, the Turkish national team enters the match with the aim of maintaining its balance and avoiding injuries, while Spain seeks to end the qualifying journey in the best possible way.
