Turkey Win Stuck In My Croat

Jun 22 2008 Paul Hartley

YOU can beat a good side but you have no chance against a lucky one.

They say fortune favours the brave so Turkey must be fearless and will take some stopping now.

It's unbelievable the way Fatih Terim's men have battled through to the semi-finals - and I had to feel sorry for Croatia on Friday night.

When I see a team grabbing a vital last-minute goal I immediately think back to Christian Panucci's heartbreaker for Italy against us at Hampden last November.

I've never felt so deflated because there is nothing you can do about it.

That's why I fancied Turkey to win the shoot-out. They were on a high and Croatia were slumped on the turf.

Winning on penalties takes some bottle and Turkey's name could be on the trophy as was the case with another unfancied side Greece four years ago, however Germany will present them with their toughest hurdle so far.

Turkey have reached the last four despite being ahead for a total of two minutes in their entire campaign.

They lost to Portugal in their opener then beat Switzerland 2-1 thanks to a last-minute winner. And they were heading out when they trailed the Czech Republic 2-0 before hitting back to win 3-2 with two goals in the final three minutes. Incredible stuff!

It would be wrong to put their success entirely down to the rub of the green. Turkey have worked hard and you have to admire their never-saydie attitude.

Credit to "the Emperor" Terim and his players for keeping going to the final whistle in every game.

Kahveci Nihat has been a revelation and continued the form he showed for Villarreal last season when he scored the goals that helped them into the Champions League.

You also have to say well done to veteran keeper Rustu Recber who came in for the suspended Volkan Demirel and saved the penalty that took the Turks through.

Volkan's appeal against the second game of his ban is heard tomorrow and I reckon he'll be recalled for the clash with Germany if he wins it.

Having lost to Croatia in the group stage, Germany must have been delighted to see the Turks triumph.

Joachim Low's side won't be complacent but Germany should go on to win the tournament if the Turks' luck runs out.

With Michael Ballack performing superbly they have a great chance.

Ballack has a lazy sort of look to his game but is explosive when it matters.

He times his runs into the box to perfection and his height and physical presence are major assets.

Ballack has been inspirational, bringing out the best in others such as Lukas Podolski and Bastian Schweinsteiger. They all played well against Portugal who were a major disappointment after being tipped by many to go the whole way.

For spells they were electric but are not consistent enough and Germany exposed them.

France were an even bigger letdown and it was a poor show failing to escape the group stage with such a talented squad at their disposal.

Overall the standard has been great. I'm a keen student of European football and it has been an education for me watching the players and seeing different formations deployed by the coaches.

Some of the tactical battles have been fascinating but the players haven't been stifled by tactics and have been given a licence to express themselves.

Perhaps the biggest battle of wits will come tonight in the Italy v Spain game. Will Italy be defensive and try to hit on the break?

I think they will as they know the threat carried by Fernando Torres and David Villa who must be the deadliest partnership in the business. Italy should win, possibly after extra time.