Türkiye vs Paraguay changed in the 25th minute when Matias Galarza struck from long range and put Paraguay 1-0 ahead. The goal was described as the fastest of the 2026 FIFA Dünya Kupası so far, and it came in Türkiye’s second D Grubu match in San Francisco.
Vincenzo Montella had already altered his XI by three changes from the Avustralya mücadelesi. Zeki Çelik, Orkun Kökçü and Barış Alper Yılmaz moved to the bench, while Mert Müldür, Yunus Akgün and Kenan Yıldız came into the starting side with Uğurcan Çakır, Merih Demiral, Abdülkerim Bardakcı, Ferdi Kadıoğlu, İsmail Yüksek, Hakan Çalhanoğlu, Arda Güler and Kerem Aktürkoğlu.
Montella’s three changes
Montella said he was motivated for the match and noted that the previous day had been his birthday. He also pointed to the need for deep runs behind a compact defense, a clue to why Türkiye altered its attacking shape before kick-off at San Francisco Bay Area Stadı on 20 Haziran Cumartesi at 06.00.
That setup still met a quick setback. Türkiye was said to be controlling the game, yet Paraguay led 1-0 in the 25th minute, which was also when the water break arrived and the scoreboard favored Matias Galarza’s long-range finish.
Galarza from long range
Galarza’s strike did more than open the scoring. If the pace claim holds, it set the benchmark for the quickest goal in the 2026 FIFA Dünya Kupası through the point reached in the match, and it left Türkiye chasing a reply with the game state already tilted against it.
The referee was Ivan Arcides Barton Cisneros, and Paraguay’s listed XI included Gill, Caceres, Gustavo Gomez, Alderete, Alonso, Almiron, Diego Gomez, Cubas, Galarza, Enciso and Pitta. For Türkiye, the immediate issue is simple: recover the tempo, turn possession into pressure, and erase a 1-0 deficit that arrived before the first half had settled.
