Euro Under-21 qualification Group A: Turkey 0 Republic of Ireland 1 (Curtis 84)
Sam Curtis struck an 84th-minute goal as the Republic of Ireland moved up to second place in the Uefa European Under-21 Championship qualification Group A table with a hard-fought win over Turkey at Esenler Stadium in Istanbul.
Tight and tense for the vast majority of the play, the visitors finally broke the deadlock inside the final-quarter when the raiding Curtis got on the end of a Joe Hodge pass and shook the back of the Turkish net. This result sees them leapfrogging Norway in the group standings and with a home encounter to come next Tuesday against Latvia, Ireland’s quest for qualification to a first European Championship finals at the under-21 grade has gathered serious momentum.
While Turkey’s Ugur Kaan Yildiz did have a couple of efforts early on – one of which was saved by netminder Josh Keeley – the Irish defence largely dealt with the attacking threat provided by their Turkish opponents in the opening period. Indeed, despite the best endeavours from both sides, the deadlock remained unbroken in time for the interval.
Even though the Turks initially probed on the resumption, the growing influence of midfield duo Hodge and Matt Healy ensured Ireland started to dictate the flow of the contest. Sinclair Armstrong unleashed a strike from a tight right-hand angle on 49 minutes after showcasing an excellent turn of pace, but Turkish custodian Emre Bilgin convincingly gathered the ball down low to keep the 0-0 scoreline intact.
Former Shamrock Rovers attacker Aidomo Emakhu also had an effort that drifted off target, just before making way for Babajide Adeeko on the third-quarter mark.
With his Turkish counterpart starting to dip extensively into his reserve options, Irish boss Jim Crawford also added Mark O’Mahony to the mix on 77 minutes. It looked like the game might be destined for a draw when Sean Roughan’s rebounded finish was ruled out for offside moments later, but Curtis and Ireland had other ideas.
Currently on loan at Peterborough United in EFL League One from Sheffield United, Curtis was picked out on the right by a delicate ball from Hodge and the Meath native took a touch before firing clinically beyond the reach of Bilgin.
There were some nervy moments in the closing stages as Turkey bombarded the penalty area in search of an equaliser – the home team even rattled the post from close-range – but Ireland eventually held out for what could prove to be a precious victory.
TURKEY: Bilgin; Yildiz, Altikardes (Altunbas, 80 mins), Saatci (Gureler, 64 mins), Ozcan; Konak (Akman, 71 mins), Baltaci; Canak (Ince, 71 mins), Elmaz, Burcu (Onal, 62 mins); Hekimoglu.
REPUBLIC OF IRELAND: Keeley; Curtis, O’Riordan, Abankwah, Roughan, Garcia MacNulty; Moran, Hodge, Healy, Emakhu (Adeeko, 68 mins); Armstrong (O’Mahony, 77 mins).
Referee: A Kourgheli (Belarus).
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