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Turkey and Haiti eliminated from World Cup after FIFA changes group-stage tiebreaker to head-to-head record
New tiebreaker rules based on head-to-head results ended both teams' hopes despite remaining group matches. Turkey and Haiti finish bottom of their groups regardless of final results.
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Turkey and Haiti have been eliminated from the World Cup after FIFA changed the rule for resolving group-stage ties by prioritizing head-to-head records over goal difference. Turkey lost 2-0 to Australia in its opening Group D fixture and then fell 1-0 to Paraguay in its second match. The team attempted 62 shots across those two defeats, including 32 against Paraguay.
M. The result will not affect its standing at the bottom of Group D. Haiti lost to Scotland and to Brazil in its Group C matches.
M. on June 24. Vincenzo Montella, Turkey's coach, addressed reporters after the Paraguay defeat. "I'm sad, but also very proud of my players.
They gave their all until the final whistle. Football is like that sometimes," he said. Montella added that he had been in football for 35 years and that such an outcome normally happens once in 50 years.
"There are [62] shots in two matches! Not to mention ball possession. Fate was not on our side," he said. "I told our footballers to hold their heads up," Montella stated. "I always look at the percentage of hard work and determination of our footballers.
