Türkiye Announces Squad for 2026 World Cup Play-Offs, Faces Romania

Istanbul, Turkey – The Turkish Football Federation (TFF) has announced a 30-player candidate squad for the upcoming European play-off matches determining qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The team will first face Romania in Istanbul on Thursday, March 26th, at the Tüpraş Stadium, with kickoff scheduled for 20:00 local time.

Play-Off Path and Potential Opponents

Should Türkiye emerge victorious against Romania, they will advance to face the winner of the Slovakia-Kosovo match in an away play-off final on March 31st. A loss to Romania would see the Turkish national team compete in a special away match against the loser of the Slovakia-Kosovo tie, also on March 31st, as per tournament regulations.

Squad Details

Head coach Vincenzo Montella has selected the following players for the crucial play-off matches:

Goalkeepers

• Altay Bayındır (Manchester United)
• Mert Günok (Fenerbahçe)
• Muhammed Şengezer (RAMS Başakşehir)
• Uğurcan Çakır (Galatasaray)

Defenders

• Abdülkerim Bardakcı (Galatasaray)
• Eren Elmalı (Galatasaray)
• Mert Müldür (Fenerbahçe)
• Mustafa Eskihellaç (Trabzonspor)
• Samet Akaydin (Çaykur Rizespor)
• Ahmetcan Kaplan (NEC Nijmegen)
• Ferdi Kadıoğlu (Brighton)
• Ozan Kabak (Hoffenheim)
• Zeki Çelik (Roma)
• Merih Demiral (Al Ahli)

Midfielders

• Kaan Ayhan (Galatasaray)
• İsmail Yüksek (Fenerbahçe)
• Orkun Kökçü (Beşiktaş)
• Hakan Çalhanoğlu (Inter)
• Salih Özcan (Borussia Dortmund)
• Atakan Karazor (Stuttgart)

Forwards

• Barış Alper Yılmaz (Galatasaray)
• Yunus Akgün (Galatasaray)
• Kerem Aktürkoğlu (Galatasaray)
• Oğuz Aydın (Fenerbahçe)
• İrfan Can Kahveci (Kasımpaşa)
• Aral Şimşir (Midtjylland)
• Arda Güler (Real Madrid)
• Deniz Gül (Porto)
• Kenan Yıldız (Juventus)
• Semih Kılıçsoy (Cagliari)

Recent Form and Expectations

Despite a challenging qualifying campaign that included a 6-0 defeat against Spain in September 2025 , coach Vincenzo Montella remains optimistic about his team’s chances of reaching the World Cup. Montella recently signed a two-year contract extension , demonstrating the TFF’s continued faith in his leadership.

The upcoming matches against Romania and potentially Slovakia or Kosovo represent a final opportunity for Türkiye to secure a spot in the expanded 48-team 2026 FIFA World Cup, co-hosted by Canada, Mexico, and the United States.