The national team will meet Switzerland in the round of 16 of the 2022 World Cup next Tuesday at 7 p.m. It is an old acquaintance of Portugal, after all, the two teams have already faced each other 25 times, but it will be the first time in the final phase of a World Cup. History says the Swiss have the advantage, a total of 11 wins, against nine of the Portuguese. However, if we exclude friendlies, Portugal is the best with six wins against five defeats and four draws.
The last time the two teams met was on June 12 this year, when Switzerland won 1-0 in Geneva, with a goal from Seferovic. The only time the two teams met in the final of a major competition, at Euro 2008, the Swiss also won 2-0, but Portugal had already secured qualification for the quarter-finals.
Switzerland has been coached by former footballer Murat Yakin since August 2021, replacing Vladimir Petkovic, who resigned after the team was eliminated in the group stage of Euro 2020. The coach continued the work of his predecessor and led in 19 matches. he won nine, won nine and lost six, having secured his passport to Qatar by winning the group where Italy was, without losing a match. In this World Cup they qualified for the round of 16 thanks to victories against Cameroon (1-0) and yesterday against Serbia (3-2), after losing to Brazil (1-0).
The team is based on a 4x2x3x1, with goalkeeper Yann Sommer (didn’t play yesterday due to the flu) being an essential player, while in defense Manuel Akanji (Manchester City) is the boss and in midfield Granit Xhaka (Arsenal) is the playmaker from a team that has two arrows aimed at opposing targets: Xherdan Shaqiri, who plays for the Chicago Fire at age 31 but is still a threat; and Breel Embolo (Monaco), who uses speed as a weapon. Left winger Ruben Vargas (Ausburg), the face of a new generation of footballers, is also highlighted.
According to Transfermarkt, the Swiss national team is valued at 281 million euros, a far cry from the corner team’s 937 million.
Source: DN
