It seems that Montenegro are struggling to compete at the level of the Nations League's second-tier division. In September, they faltered against Iceland (0:2) and Wales (1:2). Now, they face an away match against Turkey, a team considered the nominal favourite of the group.
Back at the European Championship this summer, where Turkey reached the quarter-finals, the progress of their coaching staff was evident. Under Vincenzo Montella, the Turkish team began entrusting their attacking initiative to younger players—Kenan Yıldız and Arda Güler are prime examples. Notably, the Real Madrid midfielder assisted Kerem Aktürkoğlu in scoring a hat-trick against Iceland (3:1) last month, a game where the Turks rightly claimed victory (2.22 to 0.07 xG). Turkey will continue to attack with even more intensity: Vincenzo Montella prefers deploying the attacking midfielders Hakan Çalhanoğlu and Orkun Kökçü in holding roles.
Since their June friendlies, Montenegro have suffered four consecutive defeats with an aggregate score of 2:9. They were unable to strategically close down against Iceland (0:2) and Wales (1:2), despite creating more chances against Wales (1.63 vs 0.85 xG), their finishing let them down. Robert Prosinečki has been unable to field both Nikola Krstovic and Stefan Mugoša together effectively, and as a result, their attack is not maximising its potential even though it is strong on paper.
Under Vincenzo Montella, Turkey have made significant strides, consistently achieving results through skill and experience. Montenegro lack these qualities—the group’s favourite will deal with the underdog.
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Vincenzo Montella
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coach | ||
| Player | Matches | Goals | |
|
In squad
|
|||
Uğurcan Çakır
|
gk. | 27 | -44 |
Altay Bayındır
|
gk. | 10 | -14 |
Berke Özer
|
gk. | 0 | 0 |
Muhammed Şengezer
|
gk. | 0 | 0 |
Kaan Ayhan
|
df. | 65 | 5 |
Mehmet Zeki Çelik
|
df. | 50 | 2 |
Merih Demiral
|
df. | 49 | 4 |
Mert Müldür
|
df. | 30 | 2 |
Ferdi Kadioglu
|
df. | 20 | 1 |
|
Abdülkerim Bardakcı
|
df. | 14 | 1 |
|
Eren Elmalı
|
df. | 11 | 0 |
|
Samet Akaydin
|
df. | 10 | 1 |
Emirhan Topçu
|
df. | 1 | 0 |
Hakan Çalhanoğlu
|
mf. | 92 | 19 |
|
Okay Yokuşlu
|
mf. | 45 | 1 |
Orkun Kökçü
|
mf. | 34 | 2 |
Arda Güler
|
mf. | 14 | 2 |
Atakan Karazor
|
mf. | 0 | 0 |
|
Muhammed Kerem Aktürkoğlu
|
fw. | 36 | 9 |
|
İrfan Can Kahveci
|
fw. | 35 | 2 |
|
Barış Alper Yılmaz
|
fw. | 21 | 2 |
Kenan Yıldız
|
fw. | 14 | 1 |
|
Yunus Akgün
|
fw. | 10 | 2 |
Bertug Yildirim
|
fw. | 3 | 2 |
|
Semih Kılıçsoy
|
fw. | 3 | 0 |
|
Ahmed Kutucu
|
fw. | 2 | 0 |
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Robert Prosinecki
|
coach | ||
| Player | Matches | Goals | |
|
In squad
|
|||
Milan Mijatovic
|
gk. | 40 | -46 |
Danijel Petković
|
gk. | 25 | -31 |
Balsa Popovic
|
gk. | 0 | 0 |
Igor Nikic
|
gk. | 0 | 0 |
Adam Marušić
|
df. | 61 | 4 |
Risto Radunovic
|
df. | 35 | 1 |
Igor Vujacic
|
df. | 30 | 0 |
Marko Vukčević
|
df. | 24 | 1 |
Andrija Vukčević
|
df. | 12 | 0 |
|
Nikola Sipcic
|
df. | 8 | 0 |
Slobodan Rubezic
|
df. | 7 | 1 |
Marko Tuci
|
df. | 4 | 0 |
Marko Janković
|
mf. | 48 | 1 |
Marko Bakić
|
mf. | 29 | 0 |
Edvin Kuc
|
mf. | 7 | 3 |
|
Miloš Brnović
|
mf. | 4 | 0 |
Ilija Vukotić
|
mf. | 3 | 1 |
|
Milan Vukotic
|
mf. | 0 | 0 |
Stevan Jovetić
|
fw. | 80 | 36 |
Vladimir Jovović
|
fw. | 60 | 0 |
Stefan Mugosa
|
fw. | 57 | 15 |
Milutin Osmajic
|
fw. | 25 | 2 |
Nikola Krstović
|
fw. | 20 | 3 |
Driton Camaj
|
fw. | 17 | 2 |
Andrija Radulovic
|
fw. | 2 | 0 |
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