Our Euro 2024 Fantasy team previews continue apace with Switzerland.
The Swiss are in a tough group but will be buoyed by their Euro 2020 showing, when they overcame France and made it through to the quarter-finals.
In these country-by-country guides, we’ll be looking at the best players from each nation, taking a stab at predicted line-ups, reviewing the road to Germany and more.
To do this, we’ll be calling on the help of correspondents from each country.
Here, we enlist the assistance of X user and Swiss national Mertens_Is_Life.
All prices given are from the official Fantasy Euro 2024 game.
THE ROAD TO QUALIFICATION
| Post | Team | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | Diff | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Romania | 10 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 16 | 5 | +11 | 22 |
| 2 | Switzerland | 10 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 22 | 11 | +11 | 17 |
| 3 | Israel | 10 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 11 | 11 | 0 | 15 |
| 4 | Belarus | 10 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 9 | 14 | -5 | 12 |
| 5 | Kosovo | 10 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 11 |
| 6 | Andorra | 10 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 3 | 20 | -17 | 2 |
Switzerland are growing in pedigree as an international force. They first appeared in this competition at Euro ’96 and the Schweizer Nati are now looking forward to their sixth appearance in the competition, after a best-ever finish last time out, when they reached the quarter-finals.
Switzerland qualified for the short trip to Germany with one match to spare when a 1-1 draw with Kosovo ensured they finished as runners-up in their group behind Romania.
They came through largely thanks to a strong start to their campaign, smashing Belarus and Israel 5-0 and 3-0 respectively before making it three wins on the spin with a 2-1 victory over Andorra.
Thereafter their momentum slowed as they managed only one win in their next six matches, but their fifth draw of the campaign proved enough to see them over the line. A 1-0 reverse against Romania in their final match was academic.
Murat Yakin can count on players of class and experience such as Yann Sommer (€5.0m), Manuel Akanji (€5.0m), Granit Xhaka (€6.0m) and Xherdan Shaqiri (€6.5m) – proven winners who will not be fazed by the prospect of facing Germany, Hungary and Scotland.
QUALIFICATION IN NUMBERS
- Most starts: Manuel Akanji, Granit Xhaka (10)
- Most goals: Zeki Amdouni (6)
- Most assists: Xherdan Shaqiri (3)
- Clean sheets: 3 from 10
UNDERLYING STATS
RECORD SINCE QUALIFYING
| Date | Competition | Opposition | Result | Score | Goalscorers | Assists |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 March | Friendly | Denmark (a) | D | 0-0 | ||
| 26 March | Friendly | Republic of Ireland (a) | W | 1-0 | Shaqiri | Amdouni |
| 4 June | Friendly | Estonia (h) | W | 4-0 | Zuber, Amdouni, Elvedi, Shaqiri pen | Amdouni, Schar, Vargas |
| 8 June | Friendly | Austria (h) | D | 1-1 | Widmer | Vargas |
Switzerland have played four times since qualifying for Euro 2024.
They shared a goalless draw with Denmark before beating Republic of Ireland 1-0 in Dublin courtesy of Shaqiri’s 30th international goal.
Switzerland warmed up for Euro 2024 with a 4-0 victory over Estonia, before playing out a 1-1 draw with Austria on Saturday.
The Swiss have lost only once since December 2022, when they were knocked out of the World Cup by Portugal at the Round of 16 stage. Their dead-rubber defeat to Romania has been their only reverse in 14 matches.
MOST RECENT INTERNATIONAL LINE-UPS
04/06/2024 – Estonia (h)
(3-4-2-1): Mvogo; Schar, Akanji, Elvedi; Widmer (Stergiou 61), Freuler (Sierro 46), Xhaka (Aebischer 74), Ndoye (Rieder 61); Shaqiri, Zuber (Vargas 46); Duah (Amdouni 46)
08/06/2024 – Austria (h)
(3-4-2-1): Sommer; Elvedi, Akanji (Stergiou 76), Rodriguez (Zesiger 76); Widmer, Freuler, Xhaka (Sierro 76), Ndoye; Vargas (Okafor 66), Zuber (Aebischer 42); Amdouni (Shaqiri 67)
GROUP FIXTURES
- 15 June: Hungary
- 19 June: Scotland
- 23 June: Germany
HOW FAR WILL THEY GET?
“The last 16. I don’t expect us to top the group, so if we finish second we will then have to play against the second-placed team from the group of Spain, Italy, Croatia and Albania.
“So, it’s definitely not an easy task. However, I can see us finishing second or third in the group and we can be a tough opponent for anyone.” – Mertens_Is_Life
STRENGTHS
“Switzerland love to play in tournaments and are usually tough to beat. Giants like Spain, France and Brazil have struggled to win against us in the last few years, so don’t expect us to lose big against Germany.
“We have a solid defence with an amazing shot stopper in Sommer.” – Mertens_Is_Life
WEAKNESSES
“Since the arrival of Yakin they have lost their consistency. They struggle to create good chances in attack and without Embolo it’s going to be even more difficult to score goals.” – Mertens_Is_Life
BEST EURO 2024 FANTASY PLAYERS: SWITZERLAND
“Xherdan Shaqiri (€6.5m): He is the focal point of our attack, on nearly all set pieces and nailed. With the uncertainty of minutes in the attack, he is the only one with guaranteed minutes. Also he loves to perform at these tournaments.
“Yann Sommer (€5.0m) is a great shot stopper with an incredible season at Inter. He always turns up for the national team and has a crazy good penalty record.
“Manuel Akanji (€5.0m)/Fabian Schar (€4.5m): Another route into the defence where there are points for recoveries. Akanji also offers a decent attacking threat from set pieces, which could be important as I don’t see many goals through open play. However, if Schar is likely to start I like him more. He has better attacking threat and an outside chance of going for a penalty. But of course there is a minutes risk.” – Mertens_Is_Life
FAN’S PREDICTED LINE-UP
(3-4-2-1): Sommer; Rodriguez, Akanji, Elvedi; Widmer, Xhaka, Freuler, Ndoye; Shaqiri, Vargas; Okafor
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