The Nati lost 2-0 to Serbia. After a dominant opening phase, the Swiss lost their grip on the game. The first goal came from an own goal, then Aleksandar Mitrovic unleashed a dream shot.
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- The Nati also lose their third Nations League match.
- Murat Yakin's team suffered a 2-0 defeat against Serbia.
- The Nati started the game in dominant fashion, but then Nico Elvedi's own goal put the Serbs in front. Aleksandar Mitrovic capped it off with a stroke of genius.
No, Switzerland couldn't find a way out of their autumn slump in Serbia either. National coach Murat Yakin's team had set their sights high. They wanted to show that a lot had gone against them in the first two games of the Nations League. They wanted to show that the mechanisms were working again thanks to the slightly longer preparation time. They wanted to beat Serbia for a third time in a row after the two emotional and hard-fought victories at the World Cups in Russia and Qatar.
But things turned out differently. Switzerland once again showed the face that it had shown in the European Championship qualifiers last fall: harmless offensively and quickly unsettled defensively. In the end, there were hardly any shots on goal - but an own goal and a missed penalty. Meanwhile, the Serbs, who had scored just one goal in their previous five games, made the most of their chances.
Provocations from the stands - own goal at the break
Once again, Switzerland started the first half well and pinned the Serbs back into their own half. The fans in the stands reacted with political chants directed at Swiss captain Granit Xhaka. These were provocations that were unfortunately to be expected. For the time being, the Swiss were unimpressed.
The initially surprisingly passive Serbs became more courageous after around half an hour and began to put pressure on the team with advances down the flanks. Silvan Widmer and Nico Elvedi in particular were repeatedly overrun. Both saw yellow when they brought down an escaped player.
However, it was the overall body language that changed. The Serbs celebrated successful tackles, pushed each other on and, towards the end of the first half, actually managed to seemingly intimidate the Swiss and push them back. You could sense that the Swiss were longing for the break - and then there was another free kick. This was kicked into the dangerous area, where Nico Elvedi unfortunately deflected the ball into his own goal.
Little resistance from the Nati - Kobel with a great save
It is significant that it was Elvedi who made the mishap. The defender, who was supposed to fill the gap after the retirement of Fabian Schär, has been extremely unlucky so far. In Copenhagen, it was the (harsh) red card against him that put Switzerland on the road to defeat. Now the 28-year-old Borussia Mönchengladbach defender was also responsible for the defeat in Leskovac.
However, it would be wrong to blame Elvedi alone. The Swiss failed collectively. There was little resistance in the second half either. Instead, Gregor Kobel had to make a great save shortly after the restart to prevent the deficit from increasing further. However, he too was powerless in the 61st minute when Aleksandar Mitrovic curled the ball into the net from the edge of the penalty area. This time, Manuel Akanji, who let Mitrovic do it, did not look good. The Swiss were well aware of the attacker's qualities: he had already scored against Switzerland in both World Cup matches.
Embolo fails from the penalty spot
The penalty in the 72nd minute might have been the chance to get back into the game. But Predrag Rajkovic fended off Breel Embolo's shot. It was fitting for a completely unsuccessful evening from the Swiss point of view. Switzerland are now four points behind Serbia and relegation to League B for the first time is suddenly very close.
The Swiss national team continue their campaign on Tuesday. The third meeting with Denmark this year will take place in St. Gallen. After the draw in the test match in March and the bitter defeat at the start of the Nations League in September, the Swiss will be looking for their first win.
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90.
The game is over
The Nati also lose their third game of the Nations League campaign. Murat Yakin's team made a dominant start to the game, but after 25 minutes the Serbs turned up the heat and scored their first goal before the break when Elvedi steered the ball into his own goal. In the 2nd half, Mitrovic outwitted the Swiss defense and scored the dream goal to make the final score 0:2.
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90.
Five minutes of stoppage time
The Nati still have five minutes left to turn the game around. But there is little sign of that at the moment. Serbia have the game under control and Switzerland have no recipe to outwit the Serbian defense.
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86.
No penalty - free kick
The referee sticks to his decision: free kick. The national team takes it on the half-left on the edge of the penalty area. Nothing happens that needs to be mentioned here. The score remains 0:2.
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85.
Penalty or not?
Ndoye proves his speed and passes the Serbian defense on the left. Only one leg can stop the Nati player. Free kick for the national team. However, it is still being checked whether the foul took place in the penalty area. Meanwhile, Embolo makes way for Joel Monteiro.
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79.
Xhaka tests Rajkovic
Xhaka takes heart and shoots from long range. The ball is well struck, but the Serbian keeper manages to deflect it over the crossbar. The subsequent corner is not worth mentioning.
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72.
Embolo misses a penalty
The Nati are handed the chance to score the equalizer. Dan Ndoye is felled in the penalty area and the penalty is awarded. Embolo grabs the ball and misses. Keeper Rajkovic fishes the ball out of the far left corner.
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70.
Yakin makes a triple substitution
Ulisses Garcia, Edimilson Fernandes and Andi Zeqiri are new to the team. They replace Rodriguez, Aebischer and Amdouni.
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66.
Thank you, Gregor Kobel
The game is now in Serbian hands. Mitrovic gets an unchallenged header a few meters in front of Kobel. But the national team keeper reacts with lightning speed and is able to prevent the 0:3 in extremis.
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61.
Goal Serbia
We take our hats off. Aleksandar Mitrovic sprints onto a ball that first threatens to spiral out of bounds, then he moves into the middle and smashes the ball beautifully into the top right-hand corner. Serbia lead 2:0 and the Nati seem to be on a roll.
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57.
Pavlovic completely unchallenged
Pavlovic first catches Rieder between the legs, then the defender sprints towards the Swiss goal - completely unchallenged. Then he dances the Swiss defense a bit dizzy, his shot over the goal is the only flaw in the otherwise very strong attack.
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54.
Nati goal does not count
Xhaka takes a shot from distance and the ball ends up in front of Breel Embolo, who pushes in the equalizer. However, the linesman immediately waves his checkered flag. Embolo was offside when Xhaka shot.
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48.
Kobel prevents the 0:2
Wow, it's getting hot in front of the Swiss goal. Manuel Akanji tries to knock the ball away while moving backwards, but misses and Luka Jovic storms towards goal alone with the ball. Akanji sprints after him, but it takes a strong Gregor Kobel to thwart the chance.
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46.
Yakin brings on Rieder - 2nd half underway
Fabian Rieder comes on for Silvan Widmer. Luka Jovic replaces Marko Grujic for the Serbs. Let's go into the second 45 minutes.
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45.
interval
The first half is over. The Nati are largely in control of the game and are the better team. The Serbs only turn up the heat after 25 minutes. But it never becomes dangerous. It was not until the break that the Serbs benefited from an own goal by the Nati.
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45.
Goal Serbia
The stadium is upside down. The Serbs take the lead. The starting point is a free kick on the right. The ball comes to the center, bounces off Embolo's thigh and onto Elvedi's foot before rolling into the Nati goal.
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44.
Yellow for Elvedi
After Silvan Widmer allowed himself to be run over on the left, Nico Elvedi does the same. Only the opponent was a different one: Pavlovic. Elvedi also receives a yellow card.
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39.
Serbia lead the corner-kick statistics
The Serbs give the Nati defense a bit of work again. They take three corners within a very short space of time. But they have no consequences.
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31.
Centimetres are missing
And there it is: the first big chance. Breel Embolo takes a shot from the center of the Serbian penalty area in front of the box. The low shot fizzes just past the post.
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26.
The Serbian offense awakens
The Serbs are now showing a different face. They stand taller and push more into the danger zone. The Nati are now forced to do more defensive work.
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23.
Yellow for Widmer
The Serbs enter the Nati half a little longer for the first time. Birmancevic passes Widmer, who is immediately felled by the Nati defender. Yellow for Widmer. He will miss the next game against Spain. The subsequent free kick lands in the hands of Kobel.
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19.
Mega ball from Freuler
Freuler looks up and plays a wonderful ball across half the pitch to Aebischer, who is rushing into the penalty area but is ultimately unable to take the ball cleanly. The Nati are still waiting for their first big chance.
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15.
Brief summary of the opening quarter of an hour
The Nati are overwhelmingly superior here in Leskovac. They have 78 (!) percent possession. In other words: The performance of the national team is pleasing, but the really big chances are still missing. The Serbs have hardly had any of the game so far, they occasionally try to counter-attack but are quickly stopped by the Nati.
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11.
The lively left flank
Switzerland keep coming down the left. Ricardo Rodriguez gets off to a strong start, repeatedly rushing forward on his side and making promising crosses. However, there is still nothing worthwhile because there are still Serbian defenders on the pitch to clear the ball.
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9.
Nati the more active team
The Serbs give the Swiss team a lot of freedom in their build-up play. Hardly any pressing, the home team parks the bus and stands cleverly. So far, the national team has not been able to break through.
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5.
First offensive action by the Nati
The Nati are making inroads in front of the Serbian goal. Rodriguez finds the gap in the defense and plays a wonderful pass to winger Ndoye. His cross is cleared for a corner by a Serbian foot, which remains harmless.
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3.
Nati with possession - whistling for Xhaka
The Nati let the ball circulate skillfully in the opening phase. When Granit Xhaka gets on the ball, the stadium gets loud. The Serbian crowd booed the national team captain consistently, and the Serbs were already loud during the national team anthem.
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0.
The match is underway
The game starts in Serbia. Switzerland play in white from right to left. The Serbs run in the opposite direction for the first 45 minutes.
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The line-up is here
There are hardly any surprises in the Swiss line-up for the away game against Serbia. He wants to line up "with the best eleven", announced national coach Murat Yakin on Friday evening. It is now clear what that line-up looks like. As expected, Nico Elvedi, Manuel Akanji and Ricardo Rodriguez will form the back three in front of goalkeeper Gregor Kobel.
One row further forward, Yakin will rely on the "European Championship midfield" of Silvan Widmer, Remo Freuler, Granit Xhaka and Michel Aebischer. And in attack, Zeki Amdouni, Breel Embolo and Dan Ndoye should provide a goal threat.
Ndoye, who was absent from the first two games in the Nations League, returns to the starting line-up. He replaces Ruben Vargas, who was absent through injury, while Fabian Rieder has to take his place on the bench for the time being.
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How the Serbs start
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Serbian newspaper forgets Xhaka in the national team line-up
After serving his suspension against Spain, Murat Yakin can once again count on Granit Xhaka against Serbia. The playmaker is a recurring topic before the game, and Yakin is even asked about Xhaka by a Serbian journalist at the pre-match media conference.
This makes the predicted national team line-up of the Serbian sports newspaper "Sportski Journal" all the more surprising. It is not Xhaka who is to be found in Switzerland's central midfield, but YB winger Joël Monteiro. An oversight?
![These are the line-ups predicted by the Serbian sports newspaper.]()
These are the line-ups predicted by the Serbian sports newspaper. Picture: Sportski Journal -
Relegation looming - heated duel expected
After the opening defeats against Denmark and Spain, Switzerland are threatened with relegation from the top league if they draw again. Captain Granit Xhaka and his Albanian teammates must also be prepared for provocations from their Serbian opponents and fans in their third clash with Serbia in six years.
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Match in front of only 8000 spectators
Instead of playing in the cauldron of Belgrade, the national team will be playing in the provinces - in front of 8,000 spectators. Find out why they are playing in a small, pretty stadium in Leskovac here.
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The not quite normal game
Switzerland face Serbia in the third Nations League match. The clash in Leskovac promises to be exciting in both sporting and emotional terms.
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Yakin ahead of Serbia game: "Granit knows what it's all about"
Granit Xhaka comes under the spotlight ahead of the Nations League match against Serbia. Murat Yakin makes it clear the day before the game that he has spoken to the national team captain - and that everything should be about football.
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Mystery surrounding Serbia star Vlahovic
He's scoring non-stop for Juventus Turin, but he's giving Serbia a miss: Dusan Vlahovic is missing for the second time in a row for Switzerland's opponents on Saturday. Read more here.
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Aebischer: "You have to keep a cool head when things get heated"
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Freuler: "Gnaws at our pride"
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Hello ...
... and welcome to the ticker for the match between Serbia and Switzerland. Kick-off is at 20:45.
