Guinea and Turkey played to a goalless draw in an international friendly played at New Antalya Stadium on Monday night.
In a match of few chances, Syli Nationale coach Didier Six fielded a new side in preparation for the forthcoming 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Guinea-Bissau.
Turkey should have broken the deadlock in the ninth minute when Cengiz Under played in Enes Unal, who failed to beat the on-rushing Aly Keita from close range.
The Guinea shot-stopper survived a scare in the 20th minute, as he failed to deal with Rıdvan Yılmaz’s free-kick, which eventually sailed just wide of the upright.
The visitors did have their moments in the opening half, as Kane Mamadou threatened down the right flank on a few occasions to good effect, often winning his battle with Gökhan Akkan.
The match started to open up after that, and Mamadou had another shot, this time from outside the box and closer than the first, a real let off for the Syli Nationale.
Despite having most of the possession in the first half, Didier Six’s side only troubled the Turkish goalkeeper on three occasions.
Guinea did go close just before the halftime break, as Gnagna Barry drilled an effort just wide of the upright from 20-yards out.
The Syli Nationale continued to dominate when the second half resumed, but they failed to create any clear-cut openings and were restricted to playing long balls.
Six decided to bring in reinforcements in the hope of breaking the deadlock, with the likes of Kamso Mara and Ahmad Medes coming on in the final 25 minutes.
Guinea nearly went ahead in the 75th minute, as Demba Canaras’s close range effort forcedMert Günok into a fine save, before Florent Pogba failed to capitalise on the rebound.
Morlaye Sylla should have found the back of the net minutes later, when he collected a pass from Saidou Sow but the midfilder fired horribly wide from 12-yards out.
Syli Nationale piled on the pressure in the closing stages and should have taken the lead in the 87th minute but Ousmane Kante failed to hit the target when played through on goal.
Six’s men could not find the decisive goal to secure the win and were forced to settle for a goalless draw.
Here’s how they started:
Turkey: Mert Günok, Mert Müldür, Kaan Ayhan, Ozan Kabak, Rıdvan Yılmaz, Mahmut Tekdemir, Dorukhan Toköz, Cengiz Ünder, İrfan Can Kahveci, Abdülkadir Ömür, Enes Ünal
Guinea: Aly Keita, Pa Konate, Florentin Pogba, Saidou Sow, Abdoulaye Cissé, José J. Kanté , Morlaye M. Sylla, Ibrahima I. Conté, Mohamed Ali M.A. Camara, Yakhouba Gnagna Barry, Kane Mamadou
