Necla Güngör Kıragası: ‘We will definitely be in the play-offs’

The Head Coach of the Turkish National Women’s Football Team, Necla Güngör Kıragası, stated after the defeat against Switzerland, ‘We will definitely be in the play-offs.’

In the fifth match of Group B in the 2025 European Championship Qualifiers, the Turkish National Women’s Football Team lost 2-0 to Switzerland as the host. Following the match, Head Coach Necla Güngör Kıragası evaluated the game in a press conference. Turkey’s coach Necla Güngör Kıragası, who dropped to 3rd place in the group after the defeat, expressed her gratitude to everyone for their interest and support. She said, ‘We started the match quite well, showed a good fight in the first 45 minutes. Except for the shot hitting the post and the missed clear goal opportunity, the match was quite balanced, equal. In the second half, the opponent’s physical attributes and qualities began to show, and we started to lose possession. We have the match against Hungary ahead of us. We will focus on that. You will definitely see this team in the play-offs. You will definitely see the Turkish team in the first group of the European Championship Play-Offs. First of all, I am very proud of my players. I find the effort they put in, both for the development of women’s football and for the national team, and the competitive fight they showed against such a team, very important. Without bowing our heads, we will focus on the second match and try to give our best in that match. We will also announce the play-off news with joy.’

‘We used to be crushed a lot. Today, we fought without being crushed’
When asked by the press why there was a low motivation at the start of the second half and what kind of Turkey will be seen against Hungary, Necla Güngör Kıragası replied, ‘We entered the halftime very tired. The opponent is Switzerland. It constantly pushes you. Our players were very exhausted in every battle shoulder to shoulder. It didn’t seem very possible for them to recover from exhaustion in 15 minutes. While trying to balance the game by adding new names, we conceded a goal. Then we also dropped in terms of motivation. Inevitably, they are superior to us in terms of physical level. We have been in camp for 11 days. We can only reach this level. We can only show our best game in the first 45 minutes. When we look at the opponent’s players; they are all world stars, competing in the best clubs, under the best conditions. The difference becomes apparent inevitably. You already enter halftime tired. When you start the second half, your willpower decreases. Especially when Switzerland started lively, we started to bury ourselves a bit. After the goal, we tried to recover and continue, but as we started to decline physically, our willpower decreased. When your willpower decreases, your decision-making mechanism does not work correctly. You end up surrendering to the opponent in a chain reaction. Our players still tried to do their best without surrendering. In the past, when we played against such opponents, there were times when we suffered significant differences and were crushed. Today, they tried to compete without being crushed. Therefore, it is a positive development for us.’

‘We will face Hungary with energy’
Kıragası emphasized that Switzerland is ranked 24th in the FIFA rankings, Hungary 41st, and themselves 61st, saying, ‘We faced Hungary with a good tactic in the first match. We managed to win 2-1 with the goals we scored in the second half. It is enough for us to get 1 point to stay in the play-offs. The first 3 teams will advance. Our chances are very high. We do not think we will encounter any problems. Hungary is also superior to us. But their game quality is not like Switzerland. Therefore, we will display our own game quality, rest and recover our players well from now on, and face Hungary with an energetic Turkey. The difference will not seem too much.’