World Cup 2026: Australia and Turkey Announce Opening Match Lineups
Turkey's opening World Cup 2026 match against Australia features Serie A starters Hakan Calhanoglu, who captains the team, and Zeki Celik in the starting lineup. Juventus' Kenan Yildiz is among the substitutes, rested due to fitness concerns. For Australia, Parma's Alessandro Circati starts in defense, with Sassuolo's Cristian Volpato named among the substitutes following a recent change in national allegiance.
Turkey and Australia have announced their starting lineups for their Group D match in the FIFA World Cup 2026. The game is being held on June 13, 2026, at BC Place in Vancouver, British Columbia.
Turkey's squad sees Inter Milan's Hakan Calhanoglu captaining the side from midfield, alongside Roma's Zeki Celik starting at right-back. Juventus player Kenan Yildiz has been rested among the substitutes due to a fitness concern, while former Bianconeri defender Merih Demiral is in central defense. The full Turkish lineup includes Cakir; Celik, Demiral, Bardakci, Kadioglu; Kokcu, Calhanoglu, Yuksek; Akturkoglu, Guler, and Yilmaz.
Australia's starting XI features Parma centre-back Alessandro Circati in defense. Sassuolo's Cristian Volpato, who recently changed his national allegiance from Italian, is listed among the substitutes. Australia's complete lineup consists of Beach; Circati, Italiano, Bos, Souttar, Burgess; Metcalfe, O’Neill, Okon-Engstler; Touré, and Irankunda.
According to Yahoo Sports Soccer, this marks the opening World Cup match for both nations.
