Şükür Could Be A Costly Snub For Turkey

He was the captain. He led the team in scoring through qualifying. And now, he is a mere spectator. Even before today’s 2-0 opening loss to Portugal, Hakan Şükür’s exclusion from Turkey’s Euro 2008 squad was heavily questioned. After the loss, it seems like a clear mistake from Fatih Terim.

Leaving the scoreline aside for a moment, it was not the sort of dominating win for Portugal that many expected. They were clearly the better side, and could have, with a bit of luck or a stiff crosswind, put in at least one or two more goals. But there were periods of good play from the Turks, particularly from the midfield. The lone striker? Not so much.

Kazim Kazim showed dribbling quality and creativity that couldn’t quite be called Ronaldo-esque, but he managed to make his share of problems for Portugal. Hamit Altintop, apparently back from injury, had some very good moments as well. Several times, good balls in were delivered, and precisely as many times, they were wasted.

There were several problems with Turkey, but the one that most stuck out was finishing, or the lack thereof. The best shots for the Turks were from outside the box, and every time they did manage some degree of penetration, it was all slipping and kicking air for Nihat. The lone striker role was always going to be a tough one for him against a defense like Portugal’s, but he did himself no favors in the box. To be fair, nor did anyone else wearing white on attack. They surely missed their old captain, and even if he is a little over the hill, he would surely be a nice option to have when chasing a game.

Even if he couldn’t have taken over today’s match by himself, and that would have been a bit much to ask, Şükür can still finish. He did it five times in qualifying, granted not against the best of defenses. If nothing else, he could have been a leader from the bench. At whatever age, his finishing could hardly have hurt today’s result - there was nowhere to go, in that regard, but up.