Friday’s thrilling penalty shoot out victory for Turkey acted as a demonstration to the rest of the teams left in the tournament that they will not lie down and accept defeat. By rights, Turkey should have left the Euro 2008 long before now. After struggling in the early stages of the competition and close to elimination against the Czech Republic, Friday’s victory over Croatia has put the Turkish team just one game away from the European Championship Final.

Coach Fatih Terim has probably had to contend with more problems than any of his counterparts during Euro 2008. So far, he has not been able to name the same team once after a combination of injuries and suspensions have left him with just 15 players available.

The news got worse after the game on Friday with the revelation that star striker Nihat Kahveci is a major doubt for the semi final against Germany on Wednesday. Nihat left the pitch with just minutes remaining in extra time and just before the drama of the late goals. It is understood that the Villarreal striker has sustained a thigh injury and will undergo further tests today to establish the full extent of the problem.