Türkiye see off Austria to reach Euro 2024 quarter-finals

Merih Demiral has scored twice to send Türkiye into the European Championship quarter-finals with a 2-1 win over Austria.

Demiral opened the scoring on Tuesday after less than a minute and netted again in the second half to set up a clash against the Netherlands in Berlin on Saturday.

Tuesday's game got off to a ferocious start. Both teams had chances inside the first 30 seconds, and Demiral scored inside the first minute after the Austrian defence failed to deal with a corner.

UEFA clocked the goal at 57 seconds, making it the second-fastest ever at the Euros. Albania scored after 23 seconds against Italy in the group stage.

Arda Guler delivered a perfect corner for Demiral to head in his second goal in the 59th.

Michael Gregoritsch was left free at the back post for Austria's response after another corner in the 66th, but neither team could add any more despite a flurry of chances in the rain.

The Netherlands earlier defeated Romania 3-0 to progress.

No captains

Both teams were without their captains.

Türkiye's Hakan Calhanoglu was suspended due to his yellow card from previous game, and Austria's David Alaba, arguably the country's best player, is still recovering from a knee injury that kept him from playing in the tournament.

Alaba was there to support the side as it surprisingly topped a group with France and the Netherlands, and he shared a warm embrace with Guler, his Real Madrid teammate, before kickoff.

Türkiye have played in six European tournaments so far: 1996, 2000, 2008, 2016, 2020, and currently playing 2024.

The Crescent Stars' best performance was in 2008 after reaching the semi-finals.

Türkiye also qualified for the FIFA World Cup three times, in 1950, 1954 and 2002.

Their biggest achievement so far was securing the bronze medal in the 2002 FIFA World Cup after losing 1-0 to powerhouse and eventual World Cup winner Brazil in the semi-finals but beating South Korea 3-2 to secure the third place.