Welcome to Sportstar’s highlights of the FIFA World Cup Group G clash between Serbia and Switzerland. This was Nihit Sachdeva taking you though the live action as it unfolded at Stadium 974 in Doha.
And with that, we come to the end of the group stage. Here’s the full fixtures list for the round of 16- FIFA World Cup schedule: Full list of Round of 16 matches; timings, dates; live streaming info
And the final whistle has been blown! Switzerland is through to the round of 16 as the second-placed team in Group G. However, it lost out on top spot to Brazil only on goal difference as both teams finished with six points after Cameroon’s shock 1-0 win over five-time World Champion.
Another set piece for Serbia. The ball falls at Jovic’s feet who goes for the kill but misses the near post.
Foul by Schaer on Pavlovic. Free kick for Serbia on the left side of the Swiss box. The set piece taken by Kostic is cleared for a Swiss counter-attack but it is a lone man taking the ball forward.
The Swiss team trying to run down the clock. Understandably so.
Noah Okafor comes on for Embolo.
Yellow cards issued to Xhaka and Milenkovic.
Altercation between Xhaka and Pavlovic as the two fight for the ball inside the Serbian box. Moments later, the referee is forced to step in before it could turn into a full-on brawl.
Big Update from Cameroon vs Brazil match as the African nation takes a 1-0 lead courtesy of a header from Aboubakar. However, the striker removes his jersey while celebrating and receives a second yellow card which means he has been sent off!.
Switzerland calmly clears the ball from its own box before launching a counter attack. However, no harm done to the Serbian box.
Seven minutes of added time.
Vanja Milinkovic-Savic keeps his team just about alive as he makes a save in a one-on-one situation against Fassnacht.
A loose ball cleared by Akanji on the edge of the Swiss box before Lukic could get to it.
Into the final five minutes of regulation time. Serbia with the pressure to score. The Swiss team goes through even with a draw.
Akanji takes the free kick and sends the ball into the side-netting while going for the top right corner. Switzerland makes a change as Fassnacht replaces Vargas.
Mitrovic receives a yellow card even before Switzerland could take the free kick, possibly for arguing with the referee.
Gudelj receives a yellow card for bringing Embolo down on the edge of the Serbian box.
Lukic brings down Xhaka in the middle of the pitch. Meanwhile, Djuricic walks to the sideline with blood on his face.
Pavlovic with a foul on Schaer. Free kick to Swiss side inside its own box.
Serbian captain Tadic hands over the armband to Mitrovic as he walks off the pitch, to be replaced by Djuricic. Radonjic replaces Zivkovic.
Aerial duel between Jovic and Zakaria inside the Swiss box as they both fight for the ball. Zakaria goes down and it is a free-kick for the Swiss team.
The Serbian supporters are trying to encourage their team. The time is ticking. And the men in red need an outright win here to have a chance of qualifying for the round of 16.
Serbian players putting in one cross after another but unable to find a Serbian head inside the Swiss box.
Tadic puts Mitrovic through with the ball inside the Swiss box. He shoots for the far right corner but the attempt is blocked.
Another change for the Swiss side and one of the goal-scorers - Xherdan Shaqiri - comes off. Denis Zakaria is on.
Switzerland makes a change as Sow is replaced by Edimilson Fernandes. Serbia too subs in Maksimovic for Sergej Milinkovic-Savic.
Well, well. Serbian substitute Rajkovic has received a yellow card for an altercation, possibly with Granit Xhaka.
Mitrovic goes down inside the Swiss box after he brings the ball down with his chest post a lob from one of his teammates. Serbians ask for a penalty but refereer asks to play on.
Kostic puts in a cross from the left but Kobel gathers it.
Kostic with a foul on Widmer. Switzerland has a free-kick inside its own half.
Tadic with an attempt but skies it over. Swiss team gave Jovic all the space to collect a cross inside the box before passing it to his captain. This match is not over.
Embolo had the chance to make it 4-2 for Switzerland!!!! Free kick for the team in white near the Serbian box. Cross from Rodriguez set Schaer up for an attempt at the near post which was saved by Vanja but Embolo sent the rebound over the bar as he looked to chip the ball over the goalkeeper’s head.
Pavlovic becomes the latest player to go into the referee’s book after a foul in the Serbian half. He will miss the next match if the Serbians advance to the round of 16.
Set piece for Serbia. Tadic sends it into the box. Trouble for Switzerland but it manages to clear the ball away somehow. Double substitution for Serbia as Jovic and Gudelj come on for Vlahovic and Veljkovic.
Tadic goes down in the middle of the pitch after a tackle from Xhaka.
Embolo looks to press Pavlovic, The Serbian player releases the ball before Embolo collides with him and stay down in pain.
Serbia’s defensive frailities continue to haunt it. Switzerland had all the time in the world to basically perform a practice routine.
The floodgates continue to remain open as this time, Switzerland takes the lead with a wonderfully constructed goal. Shaqiri with a lob pass found Rodriguez, who backheeled it for Freuler in the center. Freuler, cool as you like, slots it into the bottom right corner with a left-foot striker.
Foul on Xhaka by Sergej Milinkovic-Savic. The Serbian player has been issued a yellow card.
Serbia kicks things off in the second half as it plays from right to left. Remember, a draw for Switzerland would be enough provided Cameroon does not beat Brazil by a big margin.
End of the busiest first-half of Qatar 2022 in terms of goals scored. As it stands, Switzerland is going through to the knockout round but this contest is far from being done. Stay tuned for an exciting second half.
Final minute of the first half. Pavlovic with the throw-in puts Tadic through on the left wing who puts in the cross for Mitrovic. The Serbian striker’s shot is blocked before Kobel pouches it. Mitrovic, hopefully, appeals for handball.
Three minutes of added time.
Breel Embolo with the simplest of the tap-ins restores parity!!!! Shaqiri allowed to run in the middle and get close to the Serbian box before passing to Sow inside the box. Sow gave it to Widmer on the right who passed it across the face of the goal to find Embolo at the far post.
Embolo receives the ball with his back facing the Serbian goal. He tries to lay it up for Xhaka but the Serbian defense does well to clear the danger.
As it stands, Serbia is going through to the round of 16. Sensational comeback after conceding early.
Rodriguez takes the ball inside the Serbian box, cuts it back, it is cleared by the Serbian defence, Vargas with a shot from the edge of the box but it is blocked.
Attacking football at its best from Serbia. Switzerland failed to clear the reverse ball from Tadic at the edge of the box. The ball trickled inside the box, Vlahovic got to it first and took an early left-footed shot from the far post to find the bottom right corner.
Vargas receives a yellow card for committing a foul.
Shaqiri is the first Swiss player to score in three World Cup (2014, 2018, 2022). Also, he is just one goal away from equalling Sepp Huegi’s all-time Swiss record tally of six World Cup goals.
Shaqiri times his run to perfection to receive an aerial ball on the edge of the Serbian box but his shot goes wide of the near post as the Serbian defense closes in on him and brings him down.
Aleksandar Mitrovic, gets away from Akanji who was marking him, and with a sublime header finds the bottom right corner at the far post after an accurate cross from the left from his captain Dusan Tadic. This is Mitrovic’s eighth goal for the national side in his last seven games.
Switzerland has not lost after taking a 1-0 lead in a World Cup game since a 1-2 defeat to Spain in the group stage in 1966.
Of course it is Shaqiri!!!! He was basically left unmark near the right post. Rodriguez, after being put through by Vargas, with an excellent run down the left wing brought the ball inside the box before putting it across which was cleared by the Serbian defense but not far enough as the ball found its way to Sow who set it up for Shaqiri. A beautiful left-footed strike which takes a deflection off Pavlovic to beat a diving Vanja Milinkovic-Savic at the near post. However, unlike the 2018 World Cup in Russia, no double-headed Eagle celebrations this time from Shaqiri. He simply asks Serbian fans to be silent.
Kostic tries to beat the entire Swiss defense on his own as he searches for Vlahovic inside the box but eventually loses possession. Embolo launches a counter-attack before being brought down by a brilliant and clean challenge.
Dusan Tadic tries to cut the ball back to Pavlovic inside the Swiss box but it is cleared behind by Switzerland defender for a corner.
Free kick for Serbia, sent into the Swiss box but it is cleared away at the near post.
Widmer with a foul on Kostic on the left wing near the Swiss box. Yellow card issued to Widmer.
Freuler’s shot inside the Serbian box is blocked. This is exciting start from both the teams.
OFF THE POST!!!! Zivkovic sends Tadic through on the right wing before getting the cut back on the edge of the box. Zivkovic hits it with his left foot from the edge of the box and strikes the far post. The rebound comes to a Serbian player but he is not able to react quickly enough and Kobel, the Swiss goalkeeper, catches the ball.
Serbian captain Tadic tries his best, fighting two Swiss players in order to win a corner but the final touch comes from himself before the ball goes out for a goal-kick.
Ball delivered into the Serbian box but Vanja gets to it before Embolo can head it.
Corner for Serbia. Milenkovic with the header at the near post but sends it just wide.
What an electric start to the match. Serbia settling down now after some nervous moments. Vargas with a cross from the left but Akanji gets ahead of Mitrovic and clears the ball away.
KICK OFF!!! Switzerland with the opening kick of the match. The Swiss play from right to left. And straightaway Serbian goalkeeper Vanja Milinkovic-Savic is forced to make a double save!!! Xhaka with the first shot from the edge of the box followed by Embolo’s shot being saved in a one-on-one situation.
12:29AM IST - Here we go. Switzerland vs Serbia is one of the two remaining group stage fixtures with the other being Brazil vs Cameroon. After today, it will be the knockout round!
12:25AM IST - The two teams are out onto the pitch for the national anthems. Serbia in red jerseys and Switzerland in white.
Big day for Shaqiri, Xhaka and Rodriguez. Will they be able to make it memorable?
STAT
FORM GUIDE
Serbia
- Drew 3-3 with Cameroon
- Lost 0-2 to Brazil
- Beat Bahrain 5-1
- Beat Norway 2-0
- Beat Sweden 4-1
Switzerland
- Lost 0-1 to Brazil
- Beat Cameroon 1-0
- Lost 0-2 to Ghana
- Beat Czech Republic 2-1
- Beat Spain 2-1
LINEUPS!!!
Serbia: Vanja Milinkovic-Savic, Nikola Milenkovic, Milos Veljkovic, Strahinja Pavlovic, Andrija Zivkovic, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Sasa Lukic, Filip Kostic, Dusan Vlahovic, Dusan Tadic, Aleksandar Mitrovic
Switzerland: Gregor Kobel, Silvan Widmer, Manuel Akanji, Fabian Schaer, Remo Freuler, Granit Xhaka, Ricardo Rodriguez, Djibril Sow, Xherdan Shaqiri, Breel Embolo, Ruben Vargas
HEAD-TO-HEAD RECORD
PREVIEW
When Serbia plays Switzerland at the World Cup on Friday, it will be a head-to-head elimination match to get into the knockout round.
The European rivals will meet at Stadium 974 looking to advance alongside Group G leader Brazil.
PREDICTED XI
Serbia
Switzerland
Serbia coach Dragan Stojković said on Thursday “in April we knew Brazil would be in a different dimension” and the other teams were playing for second place.
“The prediction brought us to this point and there was no other way,” Stojković said through a translator.
Brazil’s 1-0 win over Switzerland on Monday, days after beating Serbia 2-0, sent the five-time world champion to the round of 16 even before playing its last game against Cameroon.
That left Switzerland in second place and likely needing only a draw with Serbia to advance. Not that the Swiss plan on settling for less than a victory.
“I don’t know a single team in the world that would go on the pitch aiming for a 0-0. That’s really dangerous,” Switzerland midfielder Djibril Sow said.
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Still, Switzerland has a proven record of managing these situations in modern tournaments, advancing out of the group to the round of 16 at the past two World Cups and in the past two European Championships.
Serbia has not played a World Cup knockout match since becoming an independent nation, and a relative lack of tournament experience — playing at three of the four World Cups since 2010 but no European Championships — perhaps showed in Qatar.
Leading Cameroon 3-1 on Monday, the Serbians lost control and conceded back-to-back second-half goals quickly to draw the game.
Stojković said his team made “silly mistakes” in that game but added criticism of his players back home was disrespectful to Cameroon.
“It cannot be seen as a tragedy,” the coach said. “Nothing is lost for Serbia here. The good thing is we decide our destiny.”
The five goals Serbia has so far conceded is as many as the rest of the group combined, while Switzerland has let in only Casemiro’s rising shot in Brazil’s 1-0 win.
Switzerland didn’t have a shot on Brazil goalkeeper Alisson Becker, but should have two creative threats on Friday: Xherdan Shaqiri in a playmaker role and Noah Okafor, whose pace and direct play can be used late in games.
Shaqiri and captain Granit Xhaka were key figures — with their goals and provocative celebrations — when the Swiss beat Serbia 2-1 at the last World Cup. Shaqiri was born in Kosovo, the former Serbian province that declared independence in 2008. Serbia doesn’t recognize Kosovo’s independence and relations between the two countries remain tense. Xhaka’s parents are originally from Kosovo and they are of Albanian heritage. His brother plays for Albania’s national team.
Both camps have declined to revisit that tense history this week, with Switzerland coach Murat Yakin on Thursday explaining a decision taken in April to speak only about the game ahead.
“We are ready and mature enough to just play soccer and ignore everything else,” said Yakin, who took charge of the Swiss team only last year.
That was a game in Russia that Serbian fans still remember ruefully for a penalty call not given for an apparent foul by two defenders on forward Aleksandar Mitrović.
Mitrović scored his first goal in Qatar against Cameroon, though a partnership with Dušan Vlahović has not developed.
Stojković did not call on Vlahović against Cameroon, after the Juventus forward lacked match sharpness from a recent groin injury when coming on late in the opening 2-0 loss against Brazil.
Barring an unlikely big win for Cameroon against Brazil on Friday, Switzerland and Serbia are playing for second place in the standings and a last-16 game Tuesday against the Group H winner — possibly Portugal.
That could suit either team. Serbia qualified for the tournament in Qatar by winning in Lisbon to top its qualifying group, while the Swiss and Portuguese traded home wins in June in the UEFA Nations League.
-AP
WHEN AND WHERE TO WATCH
Where will the Serbia vs Switzerland World Cup match kick-off?
The Serbia vs Switzerland match will kick-off at Stadium 974.
When will the Serbia vs Switzerland World Cup match kick-off?
The Serbia vs Switzerland match will kick-off at 12:30AM IST on December 3, 2022.
Where can you watch the Serbia vs Switzerland World Cup match in India?
The Serbia vs Switzerland World Cup opening match will be telecasted live on Sports18 and Sports18 HD. On Android and well as iOS, the 2022 FIFA World Cup will be live streamed on JioCinema.
Where can you watch the Serbia vs Switzerland World Cup match outside India?
The following list shows where you can watch the Serbia vs Switzerland match outside India:
United States – TV: FOX, Telemundo; Live Stream: fuboTV, Fox Sports app, Telemundo Deportes En Vivo
Canada – TV: CTV, TSN; Live Stream: fuboTV, TSN app
United Kingdom – TV: BBC One; Live Stream: BBC iPlayer, BBC Sport Website
Australia – TV: SBS; Live Stream: SBS On Demand
New Zealand – TV: Sky Sports; Live Stream: Sky Sport
Malaysia – TV: RTM, Astro; Live Stream: Astro Go
Singapore – TV: Mediacorp Channel 5; Live Stream: StarHub TV+, IPTV, Singtel TV
Hong Kong – TV: BeIN Sports, ITV; Live Stream: Now TV, ViuTV
Nigeria – SuperSport and Showmax Pro.
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