Calhanoglu returns for Turkey, Aké starts for Netherlands in Euro 2024 quarterfinal
BERLIN (AP) — Turkey captain Hakan Calhanoglu is back after a suspension and Netherlands defender Nathan Aké has recovered from a knee problem to start their European Championship quarterfinal on Saturday.
Turkey is without defender Merih Demiral, who was suspended for two matches by UEFA for making a nationalistic hand gesture after scoring in Tuesday’s 2-1 win over Austria. The gesture is used by Turkish nationalists and associated with an ultra-nationalist group.
Many Turkish fans made the gesture on their way to Berlin’s Olympiastadion.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was to attend the match after he changed his plans because of the diplomatic row with Germany over Demiral’s gesture.
German interior minister Nancy Faeser said Demiral has used his celebration “as a platform for racism” and federal minister Cem Özdemir, a German politician of Turkish descent, said the gesture “stands for terror, fascism.”
Demiral is replaced by Samet Akaydin, who’s back from a suspension.
Turkey is also without suspended midfielders Orkun Kokcu and Ismail Yuksek. They’re replaced by Borussia Dortmund midfielder Salih Ozcan and the returning Calhanoglu.
Eight Turkish players — including Arda Guler and Kenan Yildiz — are in danger of missing the next match if booked.
The Netherlands has no suspended players and coach Ronald Koeman is starting the same team that defeated Romania 3-0 in their last-16 match.
Cody Gakpo will hope to add to his three goals to help the Dutch reach their first semifinal since 2004.
Denzel Dumfries, Joey Veerman, Jerdy Schouten and Donyell Malen will hope to avoid any yellow cards that lead to suspension.
The winner will play England or Switzerland in the second semifinal in Dortmund on Wednesday. Spain faces France in the first on Tuesday.
___
Teams:
Netherlands: Bart Verbruggen, Virgil van Dijk, Nathan Aké, Stefan De Vrij, Xavi Simons, Memphis Depay, Cody Gakpo, Tijjani Reijnders, Denzel Dumfries, Jerdy Schouten, Steven Bergwijn.
Turkey: Mert Gunok, Samet Akaydin, Arda Guler, Hakan Calhanoglu, Abdulkerim Bardakci, Salih Ozcan, Mert Muldur, Kenan Yildiz, Ferdi Kadioglu, Baris Alper Yilmaz, Kaan Ayhan.
___
AP Euro 2024: https://apnews.com/hub/euro-2024