Football: Australia stun Turkey at World Cup after selection gamble pays off

Australia scored a stunning 2-0 upset over Turkey in their World Cup Group D opener on Saturday as coach Tony Popovic’s bold selection gamble paid off.

Nestory Irankunda and Connor Metcalfe scored the goals and rookie goalkeeper Patrick Beach produced a string of crucial saves to help secure a famous Australian victory at Vancouver’s BC Place Stadium.

In other matches today, heavyweights Brazil and Morocco fought out a 1-all draw in New York, Qatar and Switzerland were also locked 1-all in San Francisco, and Scotland grabbed their first World Cup win since 1990, beating Haiti 1-0.

Australia coach Popovic had pulled off a massive shock in his starting line-up, dropping experienced captain and goalkeeper Maty Ryan in favour of Beach, winning only his third cap.

Vice-captain Jackson Irvine was also dropped in favour of 21-year-old midfielder Paul Okon-Engstler in a starting XI that featured 10 World Cup debutants.

Both of those selections proved to be inspired, with Beach pulling off a string of fine saves to deny Turkey, who dominated possession and territory but could not find a way past the Australian goalkeeper.

Okon-Engstler meanwhile was instrumental in setting up the opening goal in the first half, unfurling a long ball that split the Turkish defence and sent Irankunda racing in on goal to score.

Turkey — playing in the World Cup for the first time since finishing third at the 2002 tournament — arrived in North America dreaming of making a serious run in the knockout rounds.

But their talented team made up largely of players who regularly compete in the European Champions League were unable to get to grips with a well-organised Socceroos line-up.

One of Turkey’s best chances came in the 27th minute when Real Madrid’s Arda Guler forced a smart save from Beach with a rasping shot.

Just seconds after that chance though Australia took the lead.

Beach picked out Okon-Engstler deep in the Australia half, and the 21-year-old midfielder pumped the ball upfield for Irankunda.

The Australia winger still had plenty to do but a clever first touch took him clear of the covering defence before he tucked away a low finish.

Irankunda celebrated by sprinting to the edge of the pitch and pretending to box the corner flag, mimicking former Australia skipper Tim Cahill’s signature goal celebration.

Turkey thought they had equalised three minutes later after Abdulkerim Bardakci’s piledriver from outside of the area hurtled towards goal.

But Beach got the slightest of fingertips to divert the ball onto the post and Australia survived again.

Beach kept up his commanding form in the second half, turning a Guler free-kick wide for a corner on 57 minutes.

With Beach continuing to make save after save, Australia made the game safe in the 75th minute when Metcalfe picked the ball up in midfield, advanced on goal and shot home from 25 yards.

The win leaves Australia level on three points with Group D leaders the United States, with the two teams due to meet in Seattle on Friday.

Scotland enjoy first win at World Cup since 1990

Scotland, roared on by their Tartan Army of travelling fans, savoured their first World Cup win in 36 years when they edged past Haiti for a scrappy 1-0 victory in Boston, settled by a first-half strike from John McGinn.

The Scots - needing three points against a side ranked among the minnows of the game before facing tougher opposition in the shape of Brazil and Morocco in their other Group C matches - went ahead in the 28th minute.

A close-range effort by Che Adams was saved by Johny Placide only for the ball to fall to McGinn whose shot was deflected over the Haiti goalkeeper and into the net.

Eleven minutes earlier, Scott McTominay had smacked a shot against a post and, although Haiti showed glimpses of their electric pace and put pressure on Scotland in the closing stages, Scottish goalkeeper Angus Gunn barely had a save to make.

The win, although not pretty, puts Steve Clarke’s men top of the group ahead of five-time world champions Brazil and 2022 semi-finalists Morocco who drew 1-1 earlier on Saturday and bolsters their hopes of finally making it into the knockout round of a major competition.

“We probably put the supporters through it a little bit. Everyone said it was a must-win game. We won the game,” Clarke told BBC radio. “Defensively - outstanding. We probably could have been a little bit better with the ball, but who cares?”

At the final whistle, Scotland’s supporters also showed no sign of worrying about the lack of flowing football as they launched into a raucous rendition of their trademark celebration song “Yes Sir, I Can Boogie” by Spanish 1970s disco act Baccara.

Under FIFA’s expanded tournament format, three points and a decent goal difference at the end of the group stage would offer a good chance of qualifying for the knockout stage of the competition, something that has eluded Scotland in all of their previous eight World Cups.

The Scottish supporters made the most of their return to the global stage after an absence of 28 years, giving a lung-busting rendition of their familiar tribute song for McGinn.

He repaid the compliment with his goal - which at 31 years and 238 days of age made him the oldest Scotland player to score at a World Cup - less than a month after he lifted the Europa League trophy as captain of England’s Aston Villa, while winger Ben Gannon-Doak threatened with his pace.

Haiti - playing at their first World Cup since 1974 - were bolstered by the inclusion of two players with experience of playing in the English Premier League - Jean-Ricner Bellegarde of Wolverhampton Wanderers and Sunderland’s Wilson Isidor.

But they had only a few glimpses of an equaliser. In the 38th minute, the ball fell to Ruben Providence a few yards out but he was dispossessed by Aaron Hickey. Frantzdy Pierrot headed narrowly wide in the 85th minute and had another chance in the dying moments but Scotland clung on for their win.

The Scots - whose last win at the World Cup was a 2-1 defeat of Sweden in 1990 - next meet Morocco in Boston while Haiti face Brazil in Philadelphia with both games taking place on Saturday.

- AFP / Reuters