Switzerland were confident of having their best-ever World Cup run, but their journey became a whole lot more complex after an unfathomable bout of misfiring opened the door for unheralded Qatar to snatch a point in their Group B opener.
The Swiss swagger was abundant in the blazing sunshine on Saturday, as a side playing in their sixth successive World Cup delivered a California crowd-pleaser by laying siege to the Qatar goal for almost the entire match, with a whopping 26 attempts.
They went ahead early through a Breel Embolo penalty but couldn’t build on that, paying dearly for a stoppage-time defensive lapse that allowed Qatar to level, with Boualem Khoukhi’s header going in off defender Miro Muheim, sparking jubilant scenes and leaving the Swiss shell-shocked.
While the match was historic for Qatar, who won their first-ever World Cup point, it was yet another one for the Swiss to forget in a tournament in which they’re seemingly cursed after round-of-16 exits in five of their last six appearances.
No one will fault the charismatic Swiss coach Murat Yakin for his aggressive, all-out gameplan, but it was a match Switzerland should have won with ease.
With his front line stuttering, he may need a tactical rethink ahead of the remaining Group B games against more challenging opponents – co-hosts Canada and a potentially tricky Bosnia.
‘BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD’
If Switzerland are to be dark horses at this World Cup, Yakin may have a lot of work to do.
“It really hurts a lot,” he said, describing it as two points lost.
“Now we have to get back to the drawing board, assess the match and come back stronger.”
Yakin ditched the back four that he had used in the qualifying campaign and opted for three in defence, which included Denis Zakaria, who had a licence to roam and was involved in many of the attacks.
Though Switzerland were inventive, impressive and energetic against Qatar, something was not working.
He might also rue his decision not to start the game with exciting 20-year-old attacking midfielder Johan Manzambi, who showed flashes of his confidence and flair instantly after coming on after 66 minutes.
When Embolo put Switzerland in front in the 17th minute, it had looked like the floodgates would open, with seemingly everyone but their goalkeeper camped out in the final third of the pitch.
The Swiss attacks were unrelenting, but ultimately fruitless, with frustration taking over and leading to cracks in a steadfast defence that leaked only two goals in qualifying.
“We had an idea and we wanted to be very dominant, very attacking,” Yakin said.
“We created very good chances, but unfortunately we weren’t always efficient. Maybe we weren’t smart enough, not precise enough in the end.”
