Switzerland vs Portugal. Prediction and Preview. Probable Lineups, Team News, Stats and more
Switzerland will host Portugal at the Stade de Genève in the UEFA Nations League. The match will take place on June 13, beginning at 00:15 IST.
Another Nations League fixture sees Switzerland take on Portugal at home. Have Yakin’s men done their homework to improve the situation after the previous encounters? And will they be able to withstand the pressure from Ronaldo and company, or will the plot of the prior match repeat itself? We will know the answers to these questions at the end of the clash.
Now, Parimatchnews will tell you everything you need to know ahead of the upcoming match.
Switzerland News & Current Form:
The Swiss are playing disastrously in this season’s Nations League, first losing away to the Czech Republic (1-2) and then being thrashed by Portugal (0-4). Back home, they lost to Spain (0-1). The result is 0 points and last place with a humiliating 1-7 goal difference.
“We were lucky that Portugal didn’t score two or three more goals in the first half,” Swiss captain Granit Xhaka said at the end of his monologue after the first leg.
The Arsenal midfielder realises that 0-4 with the opponent having chances for several more goals is a bad precedent. In Lisbon, Murat Yakin’s team simply fell apart – they did not counter and created nothing up front. Ronaldo had a spectacular game on the day, scoring a double and providing one assist. Was there any chance of salvation for the visitors? It was unlikely, because they had only one shot on target during the 90 minutes of the game.
Yakin risks being among the unemployed already after the Nations League with results like that. Three official rounds and the same number of defeats, and hurtful ones at that. It is up to the experts and the specialist to get to the bottom of the reasons behind the squad’s problems and performance. After all, it was not so long ago that the Crusader Reds confidently won qualification for the 2022 World Cup. They topped the table and did not lose a single match out of eight.
What’s happening now looks like some kind of attempt to rejuvenate and rebuild the team. But obviously, the new generation has not yet matured, and it’s too early to write off experienced players. Someone is missing from Switzerland from those guys who played in the World Cup qualifiers, looks like some part is lost.
Plus, all this time, the Swiss coach keeps trying different formations. He started with 4-4-2. The next step was to switch to 4-2-3-1. With the Spaniards, the Swiss have switched to 4-3-3, trying to adjust to their opponents’ format.
The only goal scored in this Nations League, by the way, was scored by newcomer from RB Slazburg – Noah Okafor, the youngest player in the team.
Portugal News & Current Form:
Portugal are led by Fernando Santos and he is up to the tasks. Many leaders from national teams have refused to come to the Nations League games, but Cristiano Ronaldo has accepted the challenge. Crish seems unstoppable and never gets tired. The star forward has already netted two goals and one assist. The same amount of work has been done by his EPL partner Joao Cancelo from Manchester City.
At the same time, the mentor may not stop there, because there are also stars like Diogo Jota, Guedes, Andre Silva, Fernandes and Carvalho. Fernando Santos’ side lead the group with seven points from three rounds. There have been two wins and one draw. The complete opposite of the Swiss, as the Portuguese have scored seven and conceded one. An interesting coincidence.
For Portugal, the first leg of the Nations League was dubbed a 1-1 draw away to formidable Spain. The visitors were rescued only in the dying stages of the game thanks to a Ricardo Horta goal. Then, on 5 June, the former European champions got a 4-0 win over Switzerland, and four days later they demolished the Czech Republic thanks to goals from Joao Cancelo and Gonzalo Guedes (2-0). They were both assisted by Bernardo Silva.
By the way, it was 100th match under the guidance of Santos. And he is trusted for a reason: smooth transition through the generations, solid results. A win in the upcoming match would augur well for the future in this tournament. Two rounds before the end of the tournament, the “team of the chosen ones” will be ahead of Spain by at least two points, and the return match against a direct rival will be played at home.
Switzerland season form guide (all competitions): W-L-D-L-L-L
Portugal season form guide (all competitions): L-W-W-D-W-W
Switzerland vs Portugal Head-To-Head Record:
| Switzerland | Draw | Portugal |
| 10 | 5 | 9 |
The three previous head-to-head encounters have ended with the following results:
- 05.06.22 Portugal v Switzerland 4-0;
- 05.06.19 Portugal v Switzerland 3-1;
- 10.10.17 Portugal v Switzerland 2-0.
Switzerland vs Portugal Predicted XI:
Switzerland possible starting lineup (4-2-3-1): Yann Sommer; Silvan Widmer, Nico Elvedi, Manuel Akanji, Ricardo Rodriguez; Granit Xhaka, Remo Freuler; Steven Zuber, Xherdan Shaqiri, Renato Steffen; Breel Embolo.
Portugal possible starting lineup (4-3-3): Diogo Costa; Joao Cancelo, Pepe, Domingos Duarte, Raphael Guerreiro; Bruno Fernandes, Ruben Neves, Danilo Pereira; Bernardo Silva, Cristiano Ronaldo, Rafael Leao.
Statistical preview of the match Switzerland vs Portugal:
- Switzerland are winless at home in eight consecutive UEFA Nations League games.
- Portugal have not lost in 12 of their last 13 away matches in the UEFA Nations League.
- Switzerland have conceded at home in 11 consecutive UEFA Nations League games.
- Portugal have scored in nine of their last ten away matches.
- Switzerland are unbeaten at home in 25 of their last 26 matches.
- Portugal have scored less than 2.5 goals away in 4 of their last 5 away games in the UEFA Nations League.
What has been said before the match:
Murat Yakin, Switzerland coach:
“We shouldn’t compare with what has gone before: not with the Portugal game [last week] nor with what we achieved in the autumn. We’ve made a few defensive errors which are punished at this level. Against Spain we improved and saw that we can hold our own tactically. I don’t want to make major changes. Jonas Omlin will play because we said that everyone will get a chance. We’ll see if Nico Elvedi can play. Same for Manuel Akanji.”
Fernando Santos, Portugal coach:
“Against Spain, [Switzerland] made substantial changes. They could have drawn: they were more aggressive. [Xherdan] Shaqiri played in front of the two midfielders against us, but against Spain he played on the right, much wider, making use of his left foot. He is a good player who finishes well. They will want to show that they can beat us but we want to do the same. I don’t know how many changes I’ll make to the starting XI, but there will be some. The players have responded well and are happy to be here. The Portuguese can be proud of them.”
Switzerland vs Portugal Prediction:
The next encounter is unlikely to be any different from the previous match. Portugal are simply too strong and versatile for a side that has no comparable players. They’re playing convincingly and consistently over the long distance. The team is the favourite in this encounter.
However, we wouldn’t write off the Switzerland national team; Yakin’s charges play at home, where they rarely lose. It was only last round that Switzerland suffered their first defeat in front of their own stands since 2014. In addition, the team will certainly want to make up for the defeat in the first leg. However, we think it is impossible to jump over head and suddenly outplay Portugal in such a good form. Anything can happen, but not in this case. All the same, based on the overall picture, Nati are showing a rather disappointing game, they are suffering a real crisis and are looking for a way out of it. The World Cup starts soon, and the team is not ready for it and can go down with a bang in the first rounds.
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Parimatch News staff prediction:
