Criticized, coach Murat Yakin takes advantage of this victory against Hungary (3-1) to reassure observers about the state of form of the Nati on Saturday.
Under pressure after disappointing qualifications for Euro 2024, Murat Yakin, the coach of Switzerland, winner of Hungary (3-1) in Cologne, was satisfied with a “mutual trust” that he has been building with his players since preparing for the tournament.
“I have confidence in myself. I have a solid team, which is fundamental. We need mutual trust, so it’s satisfying to achieve a result like this.” he said at a press conference after the meeting. “We have prepared for three weeks and the players have a good state of mind. I have a role to play in creating this climate, but the most important thing is the players.”
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By starting Michel Aebischer and Kwadwo Duah, Yakin surprised even his players, like his captain Granit Xhaka. But his choice paid off as the Bologna midfielder made an assist for Duah, before scoring the second Swiss goal himself. “I like to play chess and compare football to this game, and we have our tactics right”assured the technician with a smirk.
His Hungarian counterpart, the Italian Marco Rossi, also recognized this by considering that he had not been able to respond in the first period to the tactical change proposed by Yakin. “We thought that Switzerland would line up a classic 3-4-3, but it was more of a 3-5-2 with Aebischer who moved around a lot”he said. “I saw it very quickly, but I didn’t manage to get the message across to the players on the pitch in the first half.”
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And he was not optimistic about his team’s ability to bounce back against Germany in four days, a match that is now decisive for the Hungarians in Group A. “I defy anyone to bet a Hungarian forint on us. For now, it seems impossible”did he declare. “Germany is a different team from the last Euro, they proved it against Scotland. In my opinion, she is the big favorite for the European Championship.”
