The Euro has started – and in what way! For me, the European Championship has always been the greatest event as a player, because thousands of Swiss fans can attend the matches and celebrate this football festival. Speaking of celebrations, the Swiss team’s opening match was a great one. The first half against Hungary was, from my point of view, the best performance I have ever seen from the Nati.
But one thing after another: Was I surprised to see Kwadwo Duah and Michel Aebischer in the starting lineup? Yes, I was. But it quickly became clear during the match that these decisions, with these player profiles, absolutely made sense. What really surprised me, however, was the basic Swiss state of mind. Murat Yakin enjoys playing chess in his free time. In Cologne, he did the same on the pitch and put the Hungarian coach, Marco Rossi, in checkmate after just a few minutes. Hungary had few ideas and no solutions against Switzerland’s attitude in the first half. The Nati has shown the best tactical idea of the tournament so far.
I don’t want to hear that Hungary was weak. If it achieved such a poor performance, it is because Switzerland simply did not allow it to offer better. The staff thwarted the Hungarian team with offensive ideas. This means that there was more than just the question of how to defend the key players around Dominik Szoboszlai. We thought about a lot more solutions on how to play offensively and in possession, so that the opposing key players didn’t have the opportunity to step forward. Only great teams do this. Now Switzerland is also part of it. Analyzing the opponent so well and reacting with innovative solutions, timing in movements… In summary: it was an absolute pleasure to watch this team.
It is quite possible that with this approach, the starting XI will be different against Scotland. Amdouni instead of Duah? Or even a fit Embolo already lined up from the start? Wednesday will be a completely different match, with fewer spaces and Scotland positioning themselves with a compact defensive block. The question is: was the stroke of genius against Hungary an isolated case or can it be repeated on Wednesday? It then becomes a question of mentality. The confidence of the entire team continues to grow, cohesion increases, everyone believes in their abilities and trusts the staff. We will then be dangerous and above all unpredictable for each nation in this tournament.
I said it in my first column and I repeat it: reaching the semi-final of the Euro is possible and on Wednesday, we can take the next step in that direction. My joy at seeing this Swiss national team soon is very great.
