The national team loses 4-1 to Spain despite being outnumbered for a long time. The Swiss agree that the performance was inadequate.
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- The Swiss national team loses 4-1 to European champions Spain in the Nations League.
- After two defeats from two games, Switzerland are now bottom of their Nations League group.
- Manuel Akanji had clear words to say about the goals conceded after the game: "It was a mistake in coordination, it was too easy."
- Remo Freuler, Michel Aebischer, Becir Omeragic and Murat Yakin also analyze the bitter defeat.
Switzerland are bottom of the Nations League after two games. After a 2-0 defeat in Denmark, Switzerland lost 4-1 to European champions Spain in Geneva, despite being outnumbered for over an hour. In an interview with SRF after the game, defensive boss Manuel Akanji said: "All four goals we conceded are a matter of concern. They were mistakes. It was too easy."
The Manchester City central defender was particularly unhappy with Switzerland's second half. Too many passes were played without pressure despite being outnumbered: "We played passes just to play passes. Then you run into counterattacks like that. In the end it was deserved, we have to be honest about that."
Akanji does not believe that Switzerland had too many attacking players on the pitch in the end: "We had enough defensive players who could have defended those counter-attacks. We didn't communicate well enough together today."
Compared to the European Championship, Switzerland not only had to do without the retired Yann Sommer, Xherdan Shaqiri and Fabian Schär, but also the suspended Granit Xhaka and Nico Elvedi as well as the injured Dan Ndoye. However, Akanji does not accept the personnel changes as an excuse: "Sure, we had a few absentees. And even if a few players came on who haven't played that much recently - everyone on the pitch can communicate. That was missing today."
Switzerland continue their Nations League campaign in October with a home game against Denmark and an away game in Serbia. For Akanji, one thing is clear: "We have to get six points there."
Freuler dissatisfied with defensive work
Remo Freuler was also dismayed after the game: "Of course, a performance like that isn't good enough. We have to work much better defensively."
The Bologna midfielder was also unhappy with the performance after the break: "We didn't put enough pressure on them in the second half. Defensively, we have to work much better."
After two games in the Nations League, Switzerland are not only without points, but have also conceded six goals. Too many, says Freuler: "It can't be right that we concede so many goals. We certainly need to improve that."
