Turkey, Republic of Ireland to play friendly

The Turkish National Football Team will take to the pitch on Friday evening against Republic of Ireland for a friendly match in the Mediterranean province of Antalya.

The match at Antalya Stadium will kick off at 8.30 p.m. local time (GMT1730).

At a Thursday evening press conference, Turkey's manager Mircea Lucescu hinted at his plans for the team's future.

"There are lots of youngsters that could be the future of the Turkish national team. We want to put together a winning team with a young, talented core," said the Romanian manager, 72.

Asked about the recent performance of Turkish nationals Cengiz Under, Enes Unal, and Cenk Tosun, who are all playing abroad, Lucescu said: "They are all talented, good players. They are playing alongside great players."

"This situation also benefits our national team as well," he said, adding that unfortunately 20-year-old Celta Vigo player Emre Mor cannot make tonight's match due to illness.

Also at a Thursday evening press conference along with Ireland international Seamus Coleman, manager Martin O'Neill said he thinks Turkey and Ireland are both upset at not qualifying for this year’s World Cup.

"There will probably be a few changes that will take place for us. I think Turkey will be the same," the manager said, praising the "excellent" training facilities in Antalya.

Also taking questions, Everton's right back Seamus Coleman praised his Turkish teammate Cenk Tosun.

"He has been very good in the last couple of weeks for us," said Coleman. "In his first couple of training sessions, you can see that he’s a very good player."

Coleman also said Tosun "needed some match fitness" coming off a winter break.

"We’ve been going through a difficult spell but he’s finding the net for us now," he said. "He’s a very good player and a very good friend of mine as well."

Tosun joined English Premier League side Everton in January 2018 for a fee of €22 million.