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The national team ranks last in the Nations League after four of six games. Only if the Swiss scores against Spain and Ukraine can relegation be avoided. This is what national coach Vladimir Petkovic says before the delicate tasks.
On November 11, Switzerland will test against Belgium. The regular forces should save on this match, because three days later the League of Nations against Spain is serious.
If Switzerland loses its home game against the leader in Basel, it will be clear before the last group match against Ukraine (November 17 in Lucerne) that Switzerland will be relegated from the top division of the Nations League. But even a draw against Spain might not be enough if the match between Germany and Ukraine also ends in a draw.
Switzerland is currently in last place, four points behind Germany and Ukraine and five points behind Spain.
“At the end of this special year, we have another opportunity to play against three important teams. The friendly against Belgium offers us a good opportunity to try and test things, especially regarding our long-term goal EURO 2021. “With a smile on his face, Petkovic adds:” Even if you shouldn’t try too hard against the number one of the world. “
But the following games are more important because the objective is to avoid the descent. “In the UEFA Nations League, our goal was and is to stay in League A. For this we have to beat Spain and Ukraine. It’s difficult but not impossible. We are optimistic and at the same time realistic. Against the best teams in Europe we have to have a performance of 120 percent to win. “
Being optimistic means that he and his team want to “dominate all opponents.” “It’s realistic that we don’t have to win against teams like Spain and Germany. But it is possible. “Switzerland have already played both games against Germany (1: 1 and 3: 3).” You have to play at the highest level against the best opponents, individually and as a team. And you also need a little luck, that in the end was missing “. What also gives the Nati coach confidence is the “attitude and desire to play football” with which the players would join.
With Zakaria and Mbabu, two major players are not yet available, but they are on their way to return. Petkovic also mentions that Schär was not suspended in the second game, which is why he called up a 24-man team. And: “We are lucky to have a very good list of cancellations.” This would be important if a player was out for a short time, either with a positive crown test or an injury.
There are hardly any surprises in the Swiss national team. There is no rule without exception: because most would have expected Celtic forward Albian Ajeti (five league goals in eight games) to be rewarded with a national team for his good performance. When asked why Ajeti and Itten weren’t nominated (he usually only comes to Rangers for partial appearances), Petkovic said: “I think we have other players who can help us. But they have also done well on their teams lately. Glad to have it on my list. ”
In the last move in October, almost everything revolved around Shaqiri, who returned to the national team after more than a year, but then tested positive for the corona virus, but was eventually allowed to travel to Spain. Since then, the high-quality coach has also returned to puncture the club. When asked about his performance, Petkovic said that Shaqiri had benefited from the Nati, and vice versa. “In the national team he showed that he can still play well and he was able to confirm it at Liverpool.” Many would only report on it if it was noticeable as a scorer, but you have to look at the overall performance: “I saw a Xherdan who runs a lot and works a lot. And that’s exactly what we need. “
The squad for the next international matches:
On call:
Michel Aebischer (YB), Albian Ajeti (Celtic), Christian Fassnacht (YB), Cedric Itten (Rangers), Michael Lang (Gladbach), François Moubandje (Alanyaspor), Dan Ndoye (Nizza), Noah Okafor (RB Salzburg), Simon Sohm (Parma), David von Ballmoos (YB), Andi Zeqiri (Brighton & Hove Albion).
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