Deniz Mehmet was on the losing side as Turkey lost 3-1 to Germany in their opening match at the UEFA European Under-17 Championship in Germany.
The 16-year-old Academy goalkeeper is the first-choice for Turkey at the eight-nation finals but was unable to do anything about the host nation's three goals in the Group B fixture on Wednesday. Turkey scored first through Hasan Ahmet Sari but Germany equalised within a minute and then added the other two goals after the interval. Turkey are next in action on Saturday against the Netherlands, who drew 1-1 with England in their opening group mach.
Mehmet's team conclude their group fixtures against England on 12 May. The Young Lions have no West Ham players in their ranks - unlike every other England age group.
Turkey have won the Under-17 tournament once before in 2005, beating the Netherlands 2-0 in Italy. They were losing semi-finalists last year, when they hosted the competition, going out on penalties to France in the last-four. Should Turkey finish in the top three in their group they will qualify for the 2009 FIFA U-17 World Cup to be played in Nigeria this October. Spain, Italy, France and Switzerland are competing in Group A this week in Germany, with the top two progressing to the semi-finals to face the top two from Group B next week.
* Photo courtesy of uefa.com