Revisiting Armenia versus Turkey on the Soccer Field (Fall 2008)

Narbeh Abdalian

n.abdalian@mac.com

Armenia versus Turkey: the last time this topic was covered, it was soon after the Union of European Football Association’s draw that pitted these two feuding nations and cultures against each other for the World Cup qualifications. At the time, the major concern was in regards to whether or not there even would be a game to play due to the controversy. However, Turkey would not allow itself to forfeit the six points and lose all hope of qualification since it is too proud of a nation to allow it.

The game, scheduled for September 6, 2008 in Yerevan, Armenia at the Republican Stadium, did in fact take place. Though game itself carried great significance, the presence of the Turkish President only added to this. Now don’t get me wrong, I have just as much pride for my country as the next person, but honestly, the informed majority of soccer fans knew what the outcome was bound to be. Many of our countrymen have been waiting for this match since the announcement of the draw last year. However, the game did not live up to the hype that surrounded it, but in actuality, aside from the two nations playing, no one else in the UEFA really cared about this match. Armenia did not play well at all, which could have been caused by the lack of teamwork between the Armenian players. In the end, it was only a matter of time before Turkey broke through the Armenian defense.

The first half consisted of each team testing one another’s strengths and weaknesses. Armenia was able to hold out for the first half, but at this point, Turkey was showing that they were the better team. Fifteen minutes into the second half, Turkey was able to break through the struggling Armenian defense with a strike from Tuncay Sanli. With that opening goal, the Armenians began to struggle and the little chemistry that existed beforehand disappeared. Armenia seemed to have foregone teamwork and tried to do much of their work on an individual basis. As the efforts by the Armenian team proved futile, Turkey made it two nil seventeen minutes after the first goal, with a redirected shot from Semih Senturk. Armenia continued in vain with attempts to push forward, but in the end, Turkey won 2-0 in Yerevan.

Since the game against Turkey in September, Armenia has played against Spain, Belgium, and Bosnia. Losing all four games has pretty much ruined the chances of our Mother Country advancing to the World Cup Finals. Since joining FIFA, which is French for the International Federation of Association Football, in 1992, Armenia has never really gotten close to qualifying for any major tournament. This is mostly due to the fact that Armenia classified as a European nation in the UEFA, which consists of 53 of the world’s top football countries.

If Armenia was in the Asian Football Conference, it would be a different story as there is far less competition. Of the top twenty nations in the FIFA rankings, fourteen are part of UEFA. Also, from the 53 nations in UEFA, only thirteen qualify for the World Cup Finals. As this chapter of Armenia’s World Cup qualifying closes, we look forward to the qualifiers for Euro 2012. Hopefully between now and then, Armenia develops as a football power to grant our generation the chance to witness our Mother Country participating in a major football tournament.