Patrick Beach was a shock selection for the Socceroos but fully justified his place in the lineup with an outstanding performance. The 22-year-old goalkeeper made a stunning save to tip a powerful shot from Abdulkerim Bardakci onto the post in the first half, preserving Australia's lead. He also made two crucial saves from free-kicks in the second half, capping a dream World Cup debut.
Australia Player Ratings
Starting XI
- Patrick Beach (GK) – 8: Tipped a ballistic Bardakci shot onto the post to maintain Australia's lead in the first half, and made two crucial saves from free-kicks in the second. A dream World Cup debut.
- Alessandro Circati (CB) – 7: Calm beyond his years, strong in individual challenges, powerful in the air. Nothing got past him.
- Harry Souttar (CB) – 8: Captained the side in Mat Ryan's absence and thumped away any ball that entered the penalty area with his head or boot.
- Cameron Burgess (CB) – 7: Muscled away every attacker who came down his channel. A brick wall on the left side of a solid defence.
- Jacob Italiano (LWB) – 8: Kept Baris Alper Yilmaz quiet on the left, threw himself in front of every cross and shot. Received a standing ovation when substituted.
- Jordan Bos (RWB) – 7: Defensively disciplined in the first half; kept Arda Guler quiet for 45 minutes. Could have offered more going forward.
- Aiden O'Neill (CM) – 6: A tidy circuit-breaker in midfield, kept the team ticking along, but could have been more positive in his passing.
- Paul Okon-Engstler (CM) – 7: Grew braver as the game progressed. Delivered the long ball behind for Irankunda's opener.
- Connor Metcalfe (CM) – 8: Great energy and pressing from the opening whistle. Tore through Turkey's midfield to score Australia's second goal.
- Nestory Irankunda (FW) – 8: Scored a stunning solo goal with his first proper service of the game. Lightning pace that few can compete with, and looked dangerous every time he used it.
- Mohamed Touré (FW) – 6: Chased shadows for most of the game. Sprinted behind Turkey's defenders on a handful of occasions but tripped over himself before doing anything dangerous.
Substitutes
- Aziz Behich (for Bos, 80') – 6: Was beaten to a late header, which thankfully flew over the crossbar.
- Jason Geria (for Italiano, 74') – 6: Stayed calm when defending Kenan Yildiz, didn't make any rash decisions.
- Jackson Irvine (for Okon-Engstler, 83') – 6: Gave away a dangerous free-kick a minute after coming on, but otherwise shored up Australia's defensive midfield shape.
- Nishan Velupillay (for Irankunda, 60') – 6: Sat deep and stayed disciplined to help Australia defend their 2-0 lead.
- Tete Yengi (for Toure, 74') – 6: Used his huge frame to wrestle with Turkey's centre-backs but hardly touched the ball.
Turkey Player Ratings
Starting XI
- Urgurcan Cakir (GK) – 7: Commanding in the box, especially against some mountainous Australian centre-backs. Aside from the goal, barely put a foot wrong.
- Zeki Celik (RB) – 6: Made some threatening forward runs from right-back to provide a transitional outlet, but got beaten by Irankunda for the opening goal.
- Merih Demiral (CB) – 6: Did everything asked of him, but not much more.
- Abdulkerim Bardakci (CB) – 7: Calm under pressure, released a few cross-field attacking passes. Turkey's best defender.
- Ferdi Kadioglu (LB) – 6: Was beaten a few times at left-back but gradually made his way up the pitch to contribute to attacking phases.
- Hakan Calhanoglu (CM) – 7: Main ball-carrier, controlled the tempo and connected lines. Kept Turkey moving forward.
- Orkun Kokcu (CM) – 6: Spun a great chance wide after the half-hour. Ever-present but lacked creativity.
- Arda Guler (AM) – 8: Turkey's most creative attacking player but struggled to find clear openings.
- Ismail Yuksek (CM) – 6: Couldn't find space in Australia's tightly-packed midfield. Had one or two carries but little impact.
- Baris Alper Yilmaz (FW) – 5: Was suffocated by Italiano for most of the first half, limiting his attacking impact.
- Kerem Akturkoglu (FW) – 5: Barely touched the ball across the 90 minutes. Tried to contest a comical header against Souttar out of desperation.
Substitutes
- Mert Muldur (for Celik, 81') – 6: Added fresh legs but didn't really use them.
- Salih Ozcan (for Yuksek, 81') – 6: Struggled to crack through Australia's midfield.
- Deniz Gul (for Akturkoglu, 85') – N/A
- Kenan Yildiz (for Yilmaz, 45') – 7: Immediately elevated Turkey's attack down the left, sliding past Italiano on multiple occasions.
- Yunus Akgun (for Kokcu, 62') – 6: Brought more attacking energy to Turkey's right wing. Received a late yellow card out of frustration.
