Days of despair now a memory: Turkey

1 Adnan Erkan Ankaragucu

Despite his shirt number, Adnan is not expected to be the first-choice goalkeeper (Age 28, 1 cap).

2 Recep Cetin Besiktas

Hard-tackling right-back or midfielder who is the smallest man in the squad and second-choice captain (30, 48).

3 Alpay Ozalan Besiktas

Strong defender who moved to Besiktas from Altay in 1993, good in the air (23, 19).

4 Vedat Inceefe Karabukspor

Midfielder from a lowly Turkish League team, who may have to spend tournament on the sidelines (22, 2).

5 Tugay Kerimoglu Galatasaray

Playmaker for his club who plays versatile role in midfield for the national side. Has good vision (25, 37).

6 Ertugrul Saglam Besiktas

Goalscorer who is good both on the ground and in the air. Usually takes national team's penalties (26, 23).

7 Hami Mandirali Trabzonspor

Strong attacker with delightful ball skills. Known for timing his runs to perfection (27, 38).

8 Ogun Temizkanoglu Trabzonspor

Cool-headed sweeper who usually rises to the occasion in big games. Excellent in the air (26, 36).

9 Hakan Sukur Galatasaray

Star of the squad who scored seven goals in the qualifying games. A tall, British-style centre-forward (24, 27).

10 Oguz Cetin Fenerbahce

Captain and current most-capped player. Good vision, deft passing from the central midfield position (33, 58).

11 Orhan Cikirikci Trabzonspor

Nearly quit football after a serious leg break two years ago and has struggled to retain place in squad (29, 26).

12 Faruk Yigit Kocaelispor

Forward from a small provincial club who is likely to be a fringe player at Euro 96 (30, 7).

13 Rahim Zafer Genclerbirligi

Understudy defender, another of coach Fatih Terim's unexpected squad selections (25, 3).

14 Saffet Sancakli Kocaelispor

This lanky striker left Galatasaray last year after a row with some other players (30, 12).

15 Tayfun Korkut Fenerbahce

Last year was still playing amateur football but has impressed in his defensive midfield role for his club (22, 3).

16 Sergen Yalcin Besiktas

Overlapping wide midfielder and also the squad's free-kick expert from awkward angles (23, 13).

17 Abdullah Ercan Trabzonspor

A left-footed, distinctive blond midfielder being linked with a number of German clubs (24, 24).

18 Arif Erdem Galatasaray

Right-winger best remembered for his long-range away goal against Manchester United in 1993 (24, 10).

19 Tolunay Kafkas Trabzonspor

Tall ball-winner who has been struggling to win a permanent place in the team (28, 18).

20 Bulent Korkmaz Galatasaray

Versatile defender who can play in any position in the back line but is usually found in a central role (27, 46).

21 Sanver Goymen Altay

Goalkeeper with a provincial club who is relatively new to Fatih Terim's squad (29, 5).

22 Rustu Recber Fenerbahce

First-choice goalkeeper. Strong, agile player who has excellent positional sense (23, 15).

The team

Once one of Europe's joke sides (twice beaten 8-0 by England in the 1980s), Turkey have been transformed in the last three years under Fatih Terim. They beat both Switzerland and Sweden in the qualifiers as individual eccentricity has been replaced by focused teamwork. Not bad for a country who lost all six of their Euro 92 qualifiers. Key striker Hakan Sukur failed with Torino last year, but is still a first choice for his country.

The coach

Fatih Terim spent 13 years as a defender with Galatasaray and won a Turkish record of 51 caps. He became coach of Turkey's Under-21 side in 1990 and was promoted to the senior side in 1993, but will quit the job to succeed Graeme Souness as coach of Galatasaray next season.

The fact file

Previous appearances in finals: None.

Qualifying record: W4, D3, L1 (Group Three runners-up).

Top scorer in qualifiers: 7 Hakan.

Most appearances in qualifiers: 8 Oguz, Hakan.

Population 56.9m. Registered clubs 4,602. Registered players 237,500. Professional players 300.