Turkey Crushed by Belgium: 3-0 Loss, Güler Suspended for Italy Match

Turkey's difficult run continues as they lost 3-0 to Belgium in their third Nations League Group A, League 1 fixture. This marks their third straight defeat after losses to France and Italy, leaving the Turkish team with zero points.

Belgium Secures 3-0 Victory Over Turkey

Belgium now has 6 points, propelled by two goals from Kevin De Bruyne and one from Romelu Lukaku.

Turkey faces Italy next on Monday, October 5th, at 9:45 PM Turkish time. However, they will be without Arda Güler, who received a yellow card in stoppage time and is now suspended.

De Bruyne Opens Scoring Early

Belgium took the lead in the 10th minute. De Bruyne received the ball at the edge of the box and found the corner with an inside-foot shot for the 1-0.

Turkey attempted a response. In the 16th minute, Arda Güler controlled a pass from Ismail with his chest and shot from distance, but Lammens saved it. Three minutes later, Abdülkerim narrowly missed the equalizer with a header following a free-kick from Güler.

Belgium pushed again. Ugurcan saved Vanaken's backheel attempt in the 34th minute, and Lukebakio hit the post in the 37th after the Turkish goalkeeper's intervention.

Before halftime, Zeki Çelik created a chance: his low cross reached Merih at the far post, but his volley went over the crossbar.

De Bruyne Doubles Lead, Lukaku Seals the Win

Turkey started the second half with more initiative but couldn't find the equalizer. In the 53rd minute, Lukebakio hit the crossbar again.

The second goal came in the 59th minute. Tielemans won a loose ball in Turkey's defense and set up De Bruyne, who scored his second of the night with a shot from the left.

Montella's team tried to come back through Ilhan, Ismail, and Deniz, but failed to change the scoreline.

Belgium secured the result in the 76th minute. A quickly taken free-kick released De Ketelaere on the right, whose cross found Lukaku in front of goal for the 3-0.

In stoppage time, Güler almost scored a consolation goal from a free-kick, but Lammens pushed it over the bar. Shortly after, the Turkish player was booked, ruling him out of the next match against Italy.

Çelik Plays Full 90 Minutes: Rated 6.8

Despite Turkey's heavy defeat, Zeki Çelik received a rating of 6.8 from Sofascore for his performance, playing the entire 90 minutes.

Defensively, he made 9 contributions, including 5 tackles (2 won), 2 interceptions, 1 block, 1 shot blocked, and 5 recoveries. He also won 6 out of 8 ground duels.

Çelik also contributed offensively, creating one big chance and making 3 key passes. He completed 33 of 43 passes (77% accuracy) and delivered one successful cross out of two attempts.

He also had 63 touches, completed one dribble out of two, and took one shot that went off target. His individual performance was solid, but it wasn't enough to prevent Turkey's third loss in three Nations League matches.