Turkey’s poor role in the UEFA Euro 2020 and the defeat against the Netherlands in qualifying for the World Cup, have forced Güneş to leave.
Şenol Güneş leaves the Turkish national team after the defeat received by the national team in the last qualifying match for the Qatar 2022 World Cup, in which the Milli Takım suffered a disastrous 6-1 defeat against the Netherlands on 7 September, falling to the third place in their group.
The Turkish Football Federation (TFF) announced the decision on Friday, explaining that it had been taken by both parties by mutual agreement. “We thank our valuable coach, Mr. Şenol Güneş, who achieved important achievements for our country, for his work and his contribution to Turkish football,” said the TFF in an official statement confirming the departure of the 69-year-old veteran coach, who had taken over the reins of the national team for the second time in 2019, replacing the Romanian Lucescu.
Güneş, who in 2002 managed to qualify Turkey for the World Cup for the first time in decades, has failed on his return to repeat his past successes, and has been widely criticised for the poor role played by Turkey in the recent UEFA Euro 2020, where the national team was beaten and did not achieve a single victory. The last defeat suffered in the Netherlands is just the confirmation of some terrible statistics, in which the national team has only achieved 38 victories in 82 matches played under his command.
“I am solely responsible here, and the failure is mine,” Güneş explained to reporters during the press conference after the overwhelming defeat to the Netherlands, one of the worst losses suffered by Turkey in its history. Asked then if he had made a decision about his future after the defeat, the Turkish coach replied that he had made “that decision” during the match.
Under the contract signed with the Federation, which did not expire until 2022, Şenol Güneş will now receive a compensation of 1.5 million euros. Following his departure from the Turkish national team, several names are being considered to replace him, including Mustafa Denizli, Fatih Terim, Aykut Kocaman and Okan Buruk; another possibility is to choose a foreign coach, like his Romanian predecessor, in which case everything points to the German coach Joachim Low.
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Pablo Gómez is a specialist in Turkey and has been editor-in-chief of Hispanatolia since 2011. He has been analysing current affairs and geopolitics in Turkey and the surrounding region since 2006.
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