Fenerbahçe Players Stand Out on International Stage: Full Report
At Fenerbahçe, which sent 13 players to their respective national teams, Croatian goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic stood out with his performance against France.
Thirteen Fenerbahçe players represented their national teams. Among the Turkish players, Mert Müldür, İsmail Yüksek, Yusuf Akçiçek, İrfan Can Kahveci, and Oğuz Aydın played for the Turkish National Football Team.
Fenerbahçe’s Croatian goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic, Slovak defender Milan Skriniar, Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Edin Dzeko, Polish midfielder Sebastian Szymanski, Moroccan players Youssef En-Nesyri and Sofyan Amrabat, Nigeria’s Bright Osayi-Samuel, and Ghanaian defender Alexander Djiku all made their respective national squads.
Livakovic was one of the standout goalkeepers in the UEFA Nations League. He tried to keep Croatia in the game against France. Despite making a total of 14 saves across two matches, he could not stop the penalties.
One of the most talked-about moments of the match came when French star Kylian Mbappe kneed Livakovic after the Croatian had already caught the ball. Livakovic was briefly injured following the contact. When Mbappe tried to help him up, Livakovic pushed him away. The Croatian goalkeeper was later voted as Croatia’s favorite player of the match.
In the Bosnia and Herzegovina squad for the 2026 World Cup European Qualifiers, Edin Dzeko was taken to the hospital by ambulance after suffering a heavy blow to the nose during the match against Romania. Tests revealed that Dzeko’s nose was broken, but surgery was not required.
Polish midfielder Sebastian Szymanski started in the 2026 World Cup European Qualifier match against Lithuania, delivering four key passes and earning the Man of the Match award.
Fenerbahçe’s Slovak defender Milan Skriniar also started and played the full 90 minutes. In the UEFA Nations League B relegation playoff second leg, Slovenia won 1-0 after extra time. Skriniar fought until the final whistle.
In the African qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, which began in November 2023, Osayi-Samuel, Djiku, En-Nesyri, and Amrabat represented their countries with the following performances:
Osayi-Samuel started for Nigeria against Rwanda and was subbed off in the 77th minute.
Djiku played the full match for Ghana, which secured a dominant 5-0 win over Chad.
Mourinho’s key Moroccan players, Youssef En-Nesyri and Sofyan Amrabat, are expected to feature in the match against Tanzania on March 26. Due to this, they may return to Turkey late and could potentially miss one of Mourinho’s tactical training sessions.
