Türkiye cruises past Bulgaria 6-1 in commanding World Cup qualifier

Türkiye delivered a commanding performance against Bulgaria on Saturday, cruising to a 6-1 victory in 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying action, APA reports citing Türkiye Today.

The match saw Türkiye control proceedings from start to finish, maintaining 77.8% possession while registering 18 shot attempts to Bulgaria’s four.

Arda Guler opened the scoring for Türkiye in the 11th minute with a left-footed strike from the right side of the box to the center of the goal, assisted by Hakan Calhanoglu. The lead was short-lived, however, as Radoslav Kirilov equalized for Bulgaria just two minutes later in the 13th minute, finishing from the center of the box to the bottom right corner with his right foot after receiving a cross from Kiril Despodov.

The first half remained tightly contested, with Türkiye dominating possession but unable to break through Bulgaria’s defensive organization. Orkun Kokcu came closest to restoring the lead when his left-footed shot from the right side of the box struck the crossbar in the eighth minute. The teams went into halftime level at 1-1, though the statistics heavily favored the visitors.