Italy dominated the first half, dismantling Turkey’s defensive structure with aggressive pressing, sharp counter-pressing and assertive use of the flanks. Vincenzo Montella’s team improved considerably after the interval, however. The Expected Goals figures of 2.58 to 2.53 in Turkey’s favour underline just how much the final scoreline ultimately exaggerated the balance of the contest over 90 minutes.
Mancini’s new-look XI catches Turkey cold
Mancini reacted radically to the defeat against Belgium, making eight changes to his starting XI. Italy lined up in a 4-3-3, with Sandro Tonali operating as the deepest midfielder and Davide Frattesi and Nicolò Fagioli given greater freedom ahead of him. Francesco Pio Esposito led the line, flanked by Giacomo Raspadori and his brother Sebastiano Esposito.
Turkey nominally set up in a 4-2-3-1, but without the ball their midfield often dropped into a flatter shape. Italy repeatedly managed to break through that structure during the opening half-hour. The visitors pressed very high, forced Turkey’s build-up players into rushed decisions and quickly exploited the spaces that opened up once the first line of pressure had been beaten.
The opener arrived as early as the ninth minute. Turkey failed to properly clear a corner and Alessandro Bastoni reacted quickest to put Italy ahead. It was the beginning of an outstanding spell from the Azzurri.
The spacing in Turkey’s midfield was a particular problem. Whenever Italy played through the initial pressure, they were able to switch the point of attack quickly towards the flanks. Michael Kayode exploited those spaces superbly and became one of the key figures of the night on his senior international debut.
Kayode and Frattesi punish the open spaces
That exact pattern led to the second goal in the 22nd minute. From Turkey’s perspective, Kayode arrived from the left and forced Altay Bayındır into a save, with Frattesi converting the rebound. Five minutes later, Kayode himself took centre stage: Pio Esposito laid the ball off and the full-back finished low for 3-0.
By that stage, the game had swung completely in Italy’s favour from a tactical perspective. At half-time, the Azzurri led 10-2 in shots, 5-1 in efforts on target and 9-1 in attempts from inside the penalty area. Turkey struggled to find ways of getting Arda Güler on the ball in dangerous areas, while Italy consistently committed several players forward immediately after turnovers.
Kayode’s debut stood out for far more than just his goal. All three of his attempts were on target, his chances added up to 0.83 xG and both of his crosses found a teammate. Frattesi, meanwhile, needed only one shot to score but also created three further attempts for his teammates. His runs from midfield proved extremely difficult for Turkey to control.
At the other end, Zeki Çelik and goalkeeper Bayındır were among the weaker performers for the hosts. Çelik struggled to cope with Italy’s rotations and shifting movements in the first half, while Bayındır made several saves but looked uncomfortable in possession. That would later prove particularly costly for the fourth goal.
Montella’s triple substitution changes the game
Montella reacted decisively at the break. Merih Demiral, Orkun Kökçü and Can Uzun stayed in the dressing room, with Abdülkerim Bardakcı, İsmail Yüksek and Kerem Aktürkoğlu coming on. Turkey pushed their defensive line higher, pressed Italy’s build-up more aggressively and generally played with far greater risk.
The effect was immediate. Around 90 seconds after the restart, Turkey combined down the right, Oğuz Aydın found Barış Alper Yılmaz and the latter reduced the deficit to 3-1.
Suddenly, it was a very different game. Arda Güler began receiving more touches in advanced areas and increasingly took control of Turkey’s attacking play. Despite the heavy defeat, the Real Madrid midfielder was one of the standout players on the pitch: 101 touches, 63 completed passes from 71 attempts, four shots, 11 duels won and five fouls drawn underlined his influence. Particularly after the break, he repeatedly carried the ball through Italy’s midfield and put the visitors under much greater pressure.
Turkey’s hopes lasted only three minutes. A poor build-up sequence triggered another Italian attack. Tonali initially struck the post, before Pio Esposito reacted fastest in the box and headed home for 4-1. The hosts’ brief momentum was effectively ended on the spot.
The 4-1 scoreline flatters Italy
The closing stages were far more even, with Turkey gradually enjoying more territorial control. Over the full 90 minutes, the hosts finished with 54 per cent possession, a 15-14 advantage in shots and 24 touches in the opposition penalty area compared with Italy’s 22.
The Expected Goals numbers are particularly revealing. Turkey finished on 2.58 xG, with Italy on 2.53. A 4-1 result would normally suggest a clear difference in chance quality, but that was not the case here. Italy deserved to win because of their outstanding first half and superior efficiency, but a three-goal margin was clearly harsher than the overall pattern of the match suggested.
One major difference was finishing accuracy. Italy put eight of their 14 shots on target, while Turkey tested Donnarumma only twice despite attempting 15 shots. The Azzurri also created almost all of their genuinely dangerous chances from inside the penalty area.
Pio Esposito combined the role of target man with strong link-up play. In addition to scoring, he assisted the 3-0 and won several important aerial duels. Bastoni provided stability at the back and completed 57 of his 66 passes. When Turkey pushed forward after the interval, Giorgio Scalvini also made a major contribution with six clearances and several blocks.
Mancini praises Italy’s aggression, Montella accepts the boos
Mancini was understandably pleased with the response from his heavily rotated side.
“I only want to talk about the team because all the players played a very good game today. It was a difficult match and we approached it in the right way, staying high and aggressive throughout the game,” said the Italy coach after the final whistle.
Montella, by contrast, was highly critical of Turkey’s first half-hour.
“We started the first half very badly and produced 30 minutes that were unusual for us. You could say we deserved the whistles and the boos.”
The Turkey coach also referred to his side’s lack of familiarity with playing matches of this level every three days, while making clear that he did not want to use that as an excuse.
For Italy, the 4-1 victory delivers the first three points since Mancini’s return after the opening defeat to Belgium. Ahead of the next major test against France, the performances of several younger and newly introduced players offer particular encouragement.
Turkey, meanwhile, remain without a point after defeats to France and Italy. Before their trip to Belgium, Montella’s side will need to address above all the defensive instability that Italy ruthlessly exposed in Bursa in less than half an hour.
