CALUM KITSCHA is ready to be thrown into a red-hot Turkish atmosphere if he gets handed the No.1 jersey for England C.
Goalkeeper Kitscha has been named by national boss Paul Fairclough in the 16-man squad that will travel to Istanbul next week.
The Hayes & Yeading stopper is one of seven players who could make their debut at the Basaksehir Fatih Terim Stadium, in a game they must win to keep their International Challenge Trophy hopes alive.
England C will have to be at their best if they are to beat Turkey – likely to feature players on the books of their top clubs like Galatasaray and Besiktas.
Pressure
And if last year’s semi-final, held at Dartford, is anything to go by it should be an electric atmosphere. With smoke from flares pouring onto the pitch and a noisy Turkish following, England more than held their own, before late heartbreak as Turkey stole a 1-0 win.
Kitscha experienced international life at England’s recent St George’s Park training camp and now wants the real thing.
Kitscha, who swept the Histon player of the year awards last season, told The NLP: “It’s going to be phenomenal. I’ve seen the ground the game is at and it looks fantastic.
“I don’t know how big the crowd will be but hopefully there will be quite a few there. The best comes out in me when there is pressure on. I like it, you can use it to your advantage.
“I hope to play, no one really knows where they stand, but if I don’t it will still be a good experience. Everyone is just excited to be going out there.”
The goalkeeper position has given England C a headache this season. Dover’s Mitch Walker, who started the last Group A game in Slovakia, is out injured while his back-up Andy Coughlin has only played three times this campaign.
Kitscha was called up alongside fellow Conference South keeper Jamie Butler, although the Concord Rangers man was forced off with a knee injury in last Tuesday night’s FA Cup replay against Wealdstone.
“There’s not many keepers under 23 in the Conference. It proves me and Jamie have done well,” Kitscha added. “It’s unfortunate for Mitch that he got bad injury but it’s a good opportunity for us.”
