The first major surprise of the 2026 FIFA World Cup arrived as Australia stunned Turkey with a disciplined and deserved 2-0 victory in Group D.

It was a bitterly disappointing return to the World Cup stage for Turkey, who were making their first appearance at the tournament in 24 years. Led by head coach Vincenzo Montella and boasting a squad packed with talent from Europe's top leagues, the Turkish side entered the match as favourites. However, they found themselves frustrated by a well-organised Australian team that executed its game plan to perfection.

Before kick-off, captain Hakan Çalhanoğlu spoke confidently about Turkey's ability to dominate possession and control the game thanks to the quality of the squad. Instead, it was Australia that delivered a tactical masterclass, defending compactly in a deep block and ruthlessly exploiting opportunities on the counter-attack.

The breakthrough came midway through the first half. Following a routine save from the Australian goalkeeper after an effort from Arda Güler, the Socceroos launched a rapid transition. Nestory Irankunda accelerated past his marker, burst into the penalty area and calmly slotted a low finish beyond the goalkeeper to put Australia ahead.

Their second goal arrived in the 75th minute when Connor Metcalfe was given too much space outside the box. The midfielder took full advantage, unleashing a powerful strike into the bottom-left corner to double his side's advantage.

Turkey pushed forward desperately, but breaking down the Australian defence proved impossible. The best chance to pull a goal back fell to Merih Demiral, whose close-range effort was brilliantly denied by goalkeeper Patrick Beach, one of the standout performers of the match.

With the 2-0 triumph, Australia move level on points with the United States at the top of Group D, while Turkey are left searching for answers after a nightmare start to their 2026 FIFA World Cup campaign.

World Cup 2026

Australia - Türkiye 2:0 (1:0)
Goals: Irankunda, 27 (1:0); Metcalfe, 75 (2:0)

Australia: Beach; Circati; Bos (Behich, 84); Souttar H.; Burgess; Metcalfe; O`Neill; Okon-Engstler (Irvine J., 84); Italiano J. (Geria, 74); Touré M. (Yengi, 74); Irankunda (Velupillay, 61)
Substitution: Velupillay (from 61); Geria (from 74); Yengi (from 74); Behich (from 84); Irvine J. (from 84)
Bench: Ryan M.; Izzo; Herrington; Degenek; Trewin; Devlin; Volpato C.; Hrustic; Leckie; Mabil

Türkiye: Çakir U.; Çelik (Müldür, 81); Demiral; Bardakçı; Yüksek (Özcan Sa., 81); Kökçü (Akgün Y., 62); Güler A.; Çalhanoğlu; Aktürkoglu (Gül D., 85); Kadioglu; Yılmaz B. (Yildiz, 46)
Substitution: Yildiz (from 46); Akgün Y. (from 62); Müldür (from 81); Özcan Sa. (from 81); Gül D. (from 85)
Bench: Günok; Bayındır; Soyuncu; Elmali; Kabak; Ayhan; Akaydin; Kahveci I.; Aydin O.; Uzun
Yellow Cards: Akgün Y. 86