Socceroos goalscoring star Nestory Irankunda says Türkiye’s players could not back up their talk in Australia’s 2-0 World Cup win.
It comes after Turkish midfielder Hakan Çalhanoğlu said his side “dominated” the Socceroos, just as he publicly declared it would the day before the game.
“We didn’t dominate?” Çalhanoğlu said to an Australian journalist after the match, when questioned about his pre-game comments.
“We dominated today. Australia was just behind, defending good. Two long goals they scored. It was our mistakes.
“If you control all the game the whole 90 minutes and you don’t score, it means you have to always be focused.
“We had 78 per cent [possession], but we had not been precise, and we think it is also important to score a goal.
“We know the defence was very good. They are very tall, so it is very difficult sometimes to have a competition with other players who are much taller than us.”
Nestory Irankunda emulated Tim Cahill with his goal celebration. (AP Photo: Kaleb Tatum)
The Socceroos had the last laugh, though, producing a perfect counterattacking performance to keep Türkiye at bay while remaining a threat on the break.
Irankunda said the players were aware of the comments out of the Turkish camp and were determined to make a statement.
“We were told that there were some things said, and obviously that gave us fire in our belly,” Irankunda said.
“Obviously, it did piss off a few boys, but at the end of the day, these guys can talk all day, so we don’t really care.”
The Socceroos have been written off by plenty ahead of this World Cup, including by some outspoken American pundits in the media.
The Socceroos have been written off many, but silenced many of the doubters. (Getty Images)
As the doubters recalibrate their expectations of Australia, Irankunda is revelling in the moment.
“At the end of the day, you gotta let these people talk, and it was the same with these lot here.
“They came, they did their talking, but they couldn’t back it on the field.
“We got the win at the end of the day, and people can talk all they want, but if they’re not gonna put a performance out there on the pitch, then there’s no point in talking.”
The Socceroos next play the United States at 5:00am AEST on Saturday as they look to seal progression to the knockout stage of the tournament.
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