Real Madrid star melts fans with insane skill at World Cup | OneFootball

Real Madrid star Arda Guler has not had an enjoyable World Cup on the whole, but he has finished his tournament on a high. The highlight of Turkiye’s group stages was their late winner against the United States, and Guler played a key role in it.

The perennial dark horses, Turkiye once again failed to live up to their talent at the 2026 World Cup, exiting at the first hurdle. Despite having over 60 shots in their opening two matches against Australia and Paraguay, the Turkish side exited the tournament following two defeats in their first two games. As a result of the head-to-head record, they were already eliminated going into their final game against the USA.

Guler skill against Christian Pulisic goes viral

The final game for Turkiye may have been a dead rubber, but they did at least restore some pride with Kaan Ayhan’s 98th-minute winner. It all came about from a nutmeg by Guler on USA star Christian Pulisic in the corner, creating the space for Turkiye to work the chance.

Overall, Guler put in a fine performance, opening the scoring for Turkiye himself with a well-taken finish too. He would end up being awarded player of the match by FIFA.

Guler acknowledges criticism of World Cup performances

Despite the celebrations of the goal, he was quick to acknowledge the criticism of his side’s performance at the tournament following the final whistle.

“I didn’t play well; none of us did. Whatever is said, they are right. We played poorly and were eliminated. Hopefully, we can make up for it from now on. It was said that my morale was low before the match; I am open to criticism. They are right about all the criticism,” he commented in the mix zone, as quoted by Diario AS.

The award after the game was at least some consolation though.

“This trophy means more to me than people can imagine. As a child, I dreamed of playing in the World Cup. Standing here with the Player of the Match award in my hands, I feel that every sacrifice my family and I made was worth it. I wasn’t thinking about individual awards before the match; I just wanted to help my country win. When I heard my name announced as Player of the Match, I immediately thought of my parents, my teammates, and everyone who believed in me when I was just another kid chasing a ball.”

Guler will return to Madrid after his holidays in a bid to eek out a place for himself in Jose Mourinho’s rebuild. He could feature on the right or as a number 10 in Mourinho’s proposed system, and the fact that Nico Paz appears to be remaining at Como is a sign that Guler is part of his plans.