Euro 2020: Joe Rodon says Wales expect to face improved Turkey
- Published
'He's a superstar and he's our leader' - Rodon on Bale
Euro 2020: Turkey v Wales |
|---|
Venue: Baku Olympic Stadium Date: Wednesday, 16 June Kick-off: 17:00 BST |
Coverage: Live on BBC One and S4C, live commentary on BBC Radio 5 Live, BBC Radio Wales and Radio Cymru, the BBC Sport website and app, plus live text and score updates |
Joe Rodon says Wales are expecting to face an improved Turkey in Baku as their Group A opponents will be buoyed by a partisan crowd.
Turkey were beaten 3-0 by group favourites Italy in Rome on Friday and are bottom of the group after Wales' 1-1 draw with Switzerland, last Saturday.
Around 35,000 Turkish fans are set to attend the match, compared to a few hundred Welsh supporters.
"We are all excited, we cannot wait," the Tottenham defender said.
Rodon knows Turkey will be desperate to get off the mark in front of a partisan crowd in the Azerbaijan capital.
He said: "The natural reaction after a loss is always going to be to come out fighting for the next one and we need to be ready for that.
"But it is the same for us, we want to win as well. It is going to be a difficult game but we are looking forward to the challenge."
Wales' opening game was watched by a crowd of 8,782 with a few hundred from the "Red Wall" making their voices heard over a clutch of Swiss supporters.
Immobile and Insigne strike to secure Italy win against Turkey
But given the strong Turkish influence in Baku, that figure is likely to swell with Wales set to face a far more hostile environment.
Rodon, poised for his 16th cap, says Wales will be prepared. "Yes of course and conditions are going to be difficult," he said.
"But we all want atmosphere in the stadiums and it's great to have the fans back."
The 23-year-old defender hopes Wales can try and turn the Turkish fans against their side by dominating the game.
"We have seen it before, anything can happen in games hopefully we can do that," he added.
Embolo and Moore score in draw between Switzerland and Wales
Rodon is looking forward to the challenge presented by Burak Yilmaz.
The 35-year-old striker scored 18 goals for Lille to help them to win the French Ligue 1 title ahead of Paris St-Germain.
"Turkey having him is going to be a big challenge for us but we can only be excited and look forward to Wednesday," he said.
Wales will be hoping for more goals from striker Kieffer Moore, whose powerful header, his sixth goal for Wales, rescued a point against Switzerland.
Moore is yet to be on a losing side for Wales when he scores and Rodon says the Wales players value his contributions.
"Kieffer has scored some important goals of us in this campaign. He is an important player for us we are just delighted to have him here and hopefully he can keep putting them in for the team," he added.