QATAR FIFA 2022 World Cup: Portugal vs Switzerland 0-0, Round of 16
After winning against Serbia by 3-2, Switzerland will face Portugal in the round of 16. Both teams will meet each other for the seventh time, winning three each.
Talking about Portugal first, they came to the World Cup as potential favorites to win the mega event. They won against Ghana by 3-2 in their opening group-stage fixture. However, they were lucky to secure all three points as Inaki Williams slipped in front of the empty net in the game’s dying minutes after beating Diego Costa.
In their second group stage fixture, they secured three points against Uruguay as well by winning 2-0, but in their third & final group stage game, they lost against South Korea by 1-2, but that won’t worry Fernando Santos as he rested most of his regular players in that fixture. Despite the defeat, they topped their group with six points, two more points than second & third-ranked South Korea and Uruguay, respectively.
In the round of 16, they will take on Switzerland, who has advanced to the knock-out stages after playing some disciplined football, so it will be a challenge for Portugal’s attack to break the Swiss back line.
Nuno Mendes was ruled out for the remainder of the tournament, while Danilo is also sidelined due to his fractured ribs. Moreover, Otavio is also doubtful to participate.
Portugal Probable Starting XI:
Costa, Dalot, Pepe, Dias, Cancelo, B. Silva, Neves, Carvalho, Fernandes, Felix, Ronaldo
On the other hand, Switzerland started their World Cup campaign by winning against Cameroon 1-0, in which the only game goal was scored by Cameroon-born player Embolo who didn’t celebrate after scoring against his birth country. In their second group stage game, they made things difficult for hot favorites Brazil but conceded the goal in the ending minutes as Casemiro sent his half-volley strike back of the net.
In their third and final group stage fixtures, they secured three more points by winning against Serbia 3-2. With these results, they finished second at their group table with six points, the same as top-ranked Brazil and two more points than third-ranked Cameroon. Moving forward, they’ll face another favorite to win the mega event in Portugal, which has quality attacking players, so it will be a challenge for Switzerland to test their defense against another top attacking team.
Portugal vs Switzerland – Round of 16: Ahead of This Game, Xherdan Shaqiri Talked to the Media
“We know how to beat them. This will be a completely different game. There is much more pressure on both sides, and whoever loses will go home. This will make the game much more exciting. He spoke.
“Portugal is the favorite, but we saw the example of Argentina against Australia that everyone expected they had an easy game, and they had a lot of difficulties. Just as Australia posed problems to Argentina, with a special game on our part, we can pose many problems to Portugal.” He further added.
Switzerland is doing everything possible to see their veteran goalkeeper Yann Sommer between the sticks as he missed the final group stage game against Serbia due to illness.
Switzerland Probable Starting XI:
Sommer, Widmer, Akanji, Schar, Rodriguez, Freuler, Xhaka, Shaqiri, Sow, Vargas, Embolo
Portugal vs Switzerland – Round of 16 Match Facts:
* Location: Al Daayen, Qatar
* Stadium: Lusail Stadium
* Date: 6 December, Tuesday
* Kick-off Time: 19:00 GMT / 14:00 ET / 11:00 PT
Portugal vs Switzerland – Round of 16 Conclusion:
Switzerland has progressed to the round of 16 by playing disciplined defensive football. In contrast, Portugal has several attacking players, which means this game will be mainly about Swiss defense and Portuguese attack. Given the squad strength, Portugal is the favorite to win this contest, but at the same time, the Swiss team is capable of turning things around, and they surely will try to do that.
