IN BRIEF
- Australia will take on Türkiye in Vancouver, Canada, on 14 June.
- The son of Turkish Cypriots, Behich was raised on Turkish football and spent much of his career playing in Türkiye.
Socceroo defender Aziz Behich is ready to take on the FIFA World Cup, but the opening game will be bittersweet.
It's the first time the Melbourne-born athlete will compete against his second home, Türkiye.
"It's an important match for me, I'm excited," he told SBS Turkish.
While he now wears the green and gold, earlier in his career, Behich lived in Türkiye and played nine seasons in the Turkish Süper Lig — mostly with the club Bursaspor.
"I spent more than half my career in Türkiye," he explained.
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"Türkiye holds a very special place in my life ... It'll be different, but at the end of the day, it's a football match. It's all about three points."
One of the most decorated Socceroos in this year's squad, Behich said the team has prepared as best they can for their opener.
"Hopefully, we’ll come away with a good result from this match," he said.
"Hopefully the three points will be ours, but more importantly, it'll be a good football match for the fans to watch."
The son of Turkish Cypriots, Behich was raised on Turkish football — waking up in the early hours of the night to watch the Super Lig.
His father, Yasar Behich, was a staunch supporter of Istanbul giants Galatasaray, but switched to Bursaspor when his son donned the jersey.
The elder Behich recalls introducing his son to the game.
"When I introduced Aziz to football, my initial concern was that he shouldn't pick up bad habits; children who play sports don't pick up bad habits," he said.
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"That's why I encouraged him to take up sports. My advice is children should always do sports."
A loyal fan and father, Yasar Behich has "mixed" feelings about Sunday's match.
"I want both teams — Türkiye and Australia — to progress from the group stage," he said.
He'll be watching the match with his wife, brother, daughter and daughter-in-law.
"We’ve all come to watch and support Aziz."
Behich isn't the only one torn between the two teams. For many World Cup-loving Australians who call Türkiye home, it's a test of loyalty.
Mehmet Turgut has lived in Melbourne since 1970. Despite calling Australia home, he's hoping Türkiye will win.
"I’d like to see both teams win, but Türkiye is, of course, different. It’s different in our hearts, in our souls," he said.
Similar to Behich, Tansel Baser was born and raised in Melbourne but played football in Türkiye.
He hopes the "friendship wins out".
"I hope neither the Turkish community nor the Australian community is left disappointed. I hope the two of them come out of the group hand in hand, God willing," he said.
For Yücel Sönmez, it's less about the match and more about Behich.
"Aziz is one of our own. He plays for Australia. He's played for various teams in Türkiye. We want him to succeed too," he said.
"He’s one of our own. But, of course, our hearts are with Türkiye. Let’s hope Behich doesn't fail either."
This story was produced in collaboration with SBS Turkish.
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