English:
Türkiye Defeats Bulgaria in Possession-Dominated Match
Bursa, November 15, 2025 – In a match corresponding to the group stage of the European qualification for the World Cup, Türkiye defeated Bulgaria at the Timsah Arena. The match, refereed by Scotsman Nick Walsh, saw Türkiye dominate ball possession with 67%, reflecting their control of the game.
The first goal came in the 18th minute, thanks to a penalty converted by H. Calhanoglu. Despite Turkish dominance, the game was interrupted by several yellow cards, two for Turkish players (A. Bardakci and A. Guler) in the first half and one for Bulgarian M. Georgiev in the second.
Türkiye’s second goal came in the 84th minute when Bulgaria’s A. Chernev scored an own goal, following an assist by H. Calhanoglu, consolidating the victory for the home team. Türkiye showed offensive superiority with 17 total shots, although only 5 were on target. Bulgaria, on the other hand, tried to generate danger with 8 shots, but only 2 managed to head towards the rival goal. The match ended with clear dominance from Türkiye, who added three important points on their way to the World Cup. A Turkish player, I. Yuksek, was cautioned in the 89th minute.
Substitutions türkiye: at minute 46 M. Demiral came in and S. Akaydin went out., at minute 60 F. Kadioglu came in and M. Muldur went out., at minute 61 Z. Celik came in and K. Ayhan went out., at minute 81 K. Ayhan came in and A. Karazor went out., at minute 88 A. Guler came in and Y. Sari went out.
Substitutions bulgaria: at minute 63 K. Despodov came in and M. Minchev went out., at minute 72 Z. Dimitrov came in and M. Petkov went out., at minute 73 A. Kraev came in and I. Chochev went out., at minute 86 G. Rusev came in and V. Nikolov went out.
The teams lined up as follows:
Türkiye
Titulares:
Bulgaria
Titulares:
class=”wg_loader”>
