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Switzerland moved within touching distance of a place in the last 16 of Euro 2024 as Xherdan Shaqiri’s brilliant goal secured a 1-1 draw with Scotland on Wednesday.
Murat Yakin’s side fell behind early on as Scott McTominay struck on goal but the ball was powerfully blocked by Swiss defender Fabian Schaer.
But Shaqiri scored one of the best goals of the tournament so far, the former Liverpool striker punishing Anthony Ralston’s poor back pass with a brilliant curling shot from 20 yards out.
Switzerland took the honours in Cologne and currently sit second in Group A with four points, two behind Germany, as the hosts beat Hungary 2-0 earlier on Wednesday.
Shaqiri is crazy…what a great goal pic.twitter.com/XV2Re6KsVV
— Ox (@PeakSokratis) June 19, 2024
Switzerland were mathematically not certain to advance to the knockout rounds after beating Hungary 3-1 in their opening match, but were in a strong position heading into their final game against Germany.
Switzerland has reached the knockout stages of its last five major tournaments.
The four best teams from the second-placed table will advance to the last 16, with Scotland still expected to reach the knockout stages of a major tournament for the first time.
Steve Clarke’s side restored their pride with a dogged performance to erase the bitter taste of a 5-1 defeat to Germany in their tournament opener.
Scotland have won just one of their last 11 games, but if they can improve their goal difference with a big win over Hungary then they could still make a historic run to the last 16.
An hour before the game started, Yakin paraded around the stadium, pointing at the red wall of Swiss fans, trying to arouse the enthusiasm of the fans, but the Scottish team was the initiator of the first wave of emotion.
Primal Scream
After the devastating defeat in Munich, Scottish fans were desperate for any sign of improvement, no matter how small, and the first corner Scotland won in the game elicited a scream from the Scottish army.
The deafening noise set the tone for Scotland’s opening goal as they flew in for an interception and forced Switzerland into misfiring a pass.
Switzerland made an untimely mistake in the 13th minute but Scotland captain Andrew Robertson scored to give his team the lead.
A clever overlap by Callum McGregor found him space inside the Swiss box and he set up McTominay for a shot which flew straight at goalkeeper Yann Sommer but Schar needlessly stuck out his foot and tapped the ball into his own net.
If Scotland had some good fortune in their first game, they failed to make full use of the momentum as Ralston helped Switzerland equalize the score in the 26th minute.
Ralston made a suicide pass without looking at anyone, passing the ball straight to Shaqiri who was running towards the goal, and the 32-year-old flicked the ball into the top corner from the edge of the box.
Shaqiri’s excellent contribution led to Yakin’s decision to replace Kwadwo Dua, who had scored against Hungary, but it made way for the former Liverpool striker, who made his seventh major tournament appearance, his most in his country’s history.
Shaqiri is the only player to have scored in the last three European Championships and the last three World Cups.
Shaqiri’s magical finish gave Switzerland renewed energy and they took the advantage, with Dan N’Doye’s curling shot drawing a fine save from Angus Gunn.
Shaqiri’s powerful shot was saved by Gunn, while N’Doye’s shot went wide with only the goalkeeper left, wasting a great opportunity to help Switzerland reverse the score.
Scotland lost Kieran Tierney to a serious injury but Grant Hanley almost gave Scotland the lead when he headed in Robertson’s free kick which hit the post.
In a tense final, Switzerland’s Zeki Amdouni headed the ball inches wide, but both sides ended the game with a single point.
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