Euro 2016: Turkey face Spain, Czech Republic, Croatia

ANKARA

The 24 nations participating in the 2016 European Championship have discovered who their group-stage opponents will be next summer.

Turkey will face Spain -- crowned European champions in the last two tournaments -- the Czech Republic and Croatia in Group D.

Manager Fatih Terim described the group as “tough” but added: “Whatever the result is at the end, we are here, in France, and we will be in this race.”

The Euro 2016 draw was held on Saturday night in Paris, capital of the host country.

France will compete with Romania, Albania and Switzerland in Group A.

For the first time, the European Championship will see 24 teams fighting for the trophy, up from 16 in previous tournaments.

Four teams (Iceland, Wales, Albania and Northern Ireland) are participating for the first time, while a shock absentee is the Netherlands.

The championship will kick off on June 10, with the France - Romania match to be played in Stade de France.

The final will be played in the same stadium on July 10.

Saying “life is full of surprises” regarding match-ups, Terim said he was sure his players would create some “interesting performances”.

“New stars will emerge… Whatever the result is at the end, we are here, in France and we will be in this race," he added.

Friends reunited

Croatia’s manager Ante Cacic described the draw with Turkey as an "opportunity for revenge" while Spain’s manager Vicente del Bosque also described the group as "tough".

In Euro 2008, the Turkish team had an exhilarating ride that involved two of their Euro 2016 group rivals.

Turkey came back from the dead against Croatia drawing 1-1 with a goal scored in the 122nd minute before going on to win 3-1 on penalties.

During that tournament, Turkey also made a remarkable comeback against the Czech Republic, scoring three goals in the last 15 minutes to win 3-2.

That result brought Turkey to their first European semi-final appearance.

GROUP A

France, Romania, Albania, Switzerland

GROUP B

England, Russia, Wales, Slovakia

GROUP C

Germany, Ukraine, Poland, Northern Ireland

GROUP D

Spain, Czech Republic, Turkey, Croatia

GROUP E

Belgium, Italy, Republic of Ireland, Sweden

GROUP F

Portugal, Iceland, Austria, Hungary