Preview: Turkey vs North Macedonia - prediction, team news, lineups

Stepping up their preparations for World Cup 2026, in-form Turkey will welcome North Macedonia to Chobani Stadium Fenerbahce Sukru Saracoglu for a friendly on Monday.

The Crescent-Stars are hoping to carry their unbeaten streak into this summer's tournament, while the Lynxes are looking for a rare win.

Match preview

Vincenzo Montella's Turkey are hoping to make they mark on the World Cup this summer - 24 years since their last appearance - and they will use this friendly clash as a platform for success in North America.

The Crescent-Stars qualified for the tournament after beating Kosovo 1-0 in their playoff on March 31, courtesy of a second-half effort from Kerem Akturkoglu.

Aside from qualifying the nation for the finals for the first time since 2002, that victory also extended their unbeaten run to six games, an impressive stretch that features five wins and goes back to a 6-1 thrashing of Bulgaria in October last year.

Adding on to Turkey's excellent form is the fact that they have kept three clean sheets across their four most recent outings, conceding just three goals from their last five matches while scoring 10.

With the Crescent-Stars' World Cup opener against Australia on June 14 approaching fast, fans will be confident of a strong sendoff on Monday, especially considering that the hosts have lost just once since June 2024 when playing as the home side.

Meanwhile, Goce Sedloski's North Macedonia missed out on the World Cup once again, but they have proven resilient in recent weeks and could represent a tough challenge for Turkey.

On Friday, the Lynxes kept Bosnia and Herzegovina at bay in a 0-0 draw, following up another goalless stalemate against the Republic of Ireland in late March.

Those draws mean that Sedloski's side are now without a single victory across their last seven outings overall, and they will be desperate to get back to winning ways.

To make matters worse, North Macedonia have failed to score in four of their five most recent games, only finding the back of the net once in a 7-1 hammering against Wales in World Cup qualifying on November 18.

However, it is notable that the Lynxes have lost just two of their last eight clashes, and keeping clean sheets in three of their five contests prior to Monday's away day is a commendable feat.

Turkey form (all competitions):

North Macedonia International Friendlies form:

North Macedonia form (all competitions):

Team News

Turkey will be without Juventus' versatile forward Kenan Yildiz on Monday as he works his way back from a muscle injury, though Baris Alper Yilmaz should be on hand to start alongside Orkun Kokcu and Arda Guler behind striker Kerem Akturkoglu.

Elsewhere, controlling midfielder and captain Hakan Calhanoglu of Inter Milan is also dealing with a minor muscle injury, so expect to see Borussia Dortmund's Salih Ozcan join Ismail Yuksek in a double pivot.

In defence, centre-back Ahmetcan Kaplan is sidelined through injury, and Montella could opt for Ozan Kabak and Abdulkerim Bardakci at the heart of his backline, with Zeki Celik and Ferdi Kadioglu flanking the duo.

As for North Macedonia, they are missing winger Daniel Musovski, so Eljif Elmas and Bojan Miovski look set to support striker Elmin Rastoder up top on Monday.

At the opposite end of the pitch, the Lynxes could name an unchanged back three of Gjoko Zajkov, Darko Velkovski and Visar Musliu.

Turkey possible starting lineup:

Cakir; Celik, Kabak, Bardakci, Kadioglu; Yuksek, Ozcan; Guler, Kocku, Yilmaz; Akturkoglu

North Macedonia possible starting lineup:

Dimitrievski; Zajkov, Velkovski, Musliu; Jankulov, Atanasov, Nikolov, Herrera; Elmas, Rastoder, Miovski

We say: Turkey 3-1 North Macedonia

Turkey are missing a few key players, but they are in excellent form and will be confident of securing a positive sendoff to the World Cup.

North Macedonia have struggled for wins in recent months, but they have proven resilient and could be a stern test for Monday's hosts if they can remain defensively solid.

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