Football

World Cup 2022: Disappointed Shaqiri apologises to Swiss fans after Portugal debacle

Goncalo Ramos

Despite being underdogs ahead of the meeting, the tireless Swiss – who have a knack for producing surprises – held little fear before their clash with Portugal. The Rossocrociati had held their own in Euro 2020, knocking out world champions France from the competition and similar expectations were held ahead of their Round of 16 meeting with a more-fancied Portuguese outfit. 

A repeat of their European Championship heroics did not pan out however, as Portugal rethought their strategy. Switzerland were second best right throughout the contest and suffered a demoralizing 6-1 defeat.

Fernando Santos benched Cristiano Ronaldo in the Round of 16 fixture and his gambit paid dividends. Portugal were cutthroat in front of the goal, earning a 6-1 victory over Switzerland in the knockout fixture. 

Goncalo Ramos put them to the sword with a hattrick with Raphael Guerreiro and Rafael Leao also getting in on the action as the Portuguese added to their stack with every phase of the match. While Portugal storm into their first World Cup quarter-final since 2006, the Swiss are on their way back home.

Xherdan Shaqiri apologised to Switzerland fans who had to witness the result. The Chicago Fire winger admitted that the Rossocrociati were second-best and were beaten by a squad blessed with greater quality.  

“Today we have to apologise to all Switzerland fans in the name of the team. That was not our true face tonight,” Shaqiri said.

“We’re very disappointed. We were shown our limits tonight. The coach gave us a plan but it did not work out for us. We lost the game already in the first half and were always a step too late.”

Looking at Qatar journey with pride

Similar sentiments were shared by Swiss coach Murat Yakin. The manager asked their supporters to not point the blame at their players as Portugal were the better side. However, he admitted that the margin of defeat was greater than their estimates and should have kept the scores low.

“We must accept this defeat and congratulate Portugal,” he said. “They were the best team this evening. They surprised us.”

“We lost a game today but that doesn’t mean we have to be too pessimistic and criticise everything. The team has shown great team spirit.

“But this defeat hurts. The score and the manner of the loss sadden me.”

The last time Switzerland reached the quarter-finals, the Champions League had yet to be formed and Pele had yet to reach puberty, let alone star for Brazil. Following their win over France at this stage in the Euros and race to the quarter-finals, it was expected they would get over their jinx. 

Switzerland

In the aftermath of the defeat, Yakin was understandably disappointed but praised his charges. He pointed at the challenges they overcome in their path and opined that they should be proud of their achievements. 

“We only lost one game, why should we question everything?” he said. “It’s true that we didn’t meet our fans’ expectations but we can look back on our journey in this World Cup with pride. Now we have to look to the future.”

Portugal will take on the challenge of Morocco in the quarter-finals. The Atlas Lions denied Spain for 120 minutes and won the penalty shootout lottery despite the Spaniards’ 1000 penalty homework. 


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