Qualified for the first time in a major international competition, the Georgian team coached by Willy Sagnol enters the fray today against Turkey for this first Group F meeting.
For this historic day of Georgian football, we will have a duel between neighbors at the end of the afternoon at the Dortmund Stadium (at 6 p.m.). Two nations from the far east of Europe who are not among the favorites of the competition, but who both have a lot of appetite to make it through the first round of the competition.
Georgia without complexes
Willy Sagnol, in charge of this Georgian selection since February 2021, firmly believes in his team’s chances of spoiling the party in Germany. The work he managed to accomplish in three years in this small country of 3.71 million inhabitants is colossal. Having moved from 98th to 75th in the FIFA rankings, Georgia also reached League B of the Nations League after an almost perfect run (5 wins, 1 draw).
The lack of experience and certainty required for a tournament of this magnitude can represent a handicap for this type of tournament. But that doesn’t scare Sagnol, who will today become the first Frenchman to coach a team other than the French team in a EURO.
Mikautadze and Kvaratshkelia the leaders of an ambitious group
Napoli’s attacking midfielder and team star Khvicha Kvarashkelia will play a key role in leading the Georgian team as far as possible. His experience in Serie A can lead to the emergence of other gems on the international scene. In the 26 selected for Germany, 23 clubs are represented across 17 countries. Two attackers play in France, in this case Davitachvili (Bordeaux) and Mikautadze (Metz). The latter, a brilliant scorer for Lorraine, will try to flourish with his national team by donning the costume of the providential striker.
A rejuvenated Turkey team
Turkey, which has struggled to shine in the final stages of the EURO since its brilliant run in 2008 (semi-finalist), arrives in Germany with a rejuvenated and remodeled team. Italian coach Vincenzo Montella has also made his mark since his induction in September 2023. He has been insisting for days that these players must be ambitious but not arrogant. In a well-established collective without stars, it is the young Orkun Kokçu (Benfica, 24 years old) who should take on the role of playmaker.
The probable lineups of the two teams
Turkey’s probable team: Cakir (L) – Cadioglu, Bardakci, Akyadin, Celik – Ozcan, Calhanonglu, AKturkoglu, Yildiz, Kokcu – BA Yilmaz
Georgia’s probable team: Mamadashvili (L) – Kachia, Dvali, Kvirkvelia – Chengelia, Kochorachvili, Mekvabichvili, Kakabadze, Chakvetadze – Mikautadze, Kvaratshkelia
TV broadcast and Streaming – On which channel to watch the meeting
You will have one and only choice to see this Turkey – Georgia (which will be refereed by the Argentinian Facundo Tello). This poster will be broadcast by beIN Sports 1. The channel also broadcasts all of the Euro 2024 matches.
To follow the match on your smartphone, computer or tablet you must take out a 100% digital subscription to BeIN SPORTS CONNECT which will allow you to join beIN Sports
The proposed ribs
- Betlic: Türkiye 1.65/ Draw 3.60/ Georgia 4.75
- Bwin: Türkiye 1.70/ Draw 3.80/ Georgia 5.10
- Winamax: Türkiye 1.70/ Draw 3.80/ Georgia 5.10
- Unibet: Türkiye 1.70/ Draw 3.80/ Georgia 5.10