Switzerland 1-1 Serbia Player Ratings as missed chances see the Swiss relegated to League B

In what was a rather important showdown in the UEFA Nations League A Group 4, Switzerland took on Serbia as both sides sought to secure their place into the next round. Seeing that both sides have been struggling as of late, and occupy the lower spots, a win would help either side get a foothold of their group. With Spain-Denmark also playing a part in the standings, both sides needed a win today and certainly played like it. 

While it seemed that Switzerland, after all the chances they had created, finally managed to settle the tie with their goal, a late Serbian counter-attack saw it all come undone. Despite creating fewer chances, the Serbs had a few big opportunities of their own. That said, they were able to pick their chance and get the all-important goal to keep their place in the group. As for the Swiss, they will rue their missed chances to have put the game beyond doubt and at least give themselves a chance to qualify. 

All in all, the game was very tense and end to end with both sides looking as though they could score with every attack. Be it missed penalties, awe-inspiring saves, or a magical bit of quality, the game had it all, and the players on both teams most certainly left their all on the pitch.

Switzerland Player Ratings vs Serbia

Goalkeeper

Gregor Kobel: 7/10- Incredible in goal and quite literally saved his side on occasion. Despite having fewer shots to deal with, Kobel did well to contest the ball in the air at times and most importantly pulled off an excellent stop to deny Serbia from the penalty kick. Was unlucky to be left on his own for the goal Serbia scored.

Defenders

Ricardo Rodríguez: 6/10- Got up the pitch quite a lot in order to try and aid the attack and was often the initiator of any such move off the left side. Needed to take more initiative and try to create something himself as well. 

Aurèle Amenda: 7/10- Solid at the back and strong with his tackles. Showed the right amount of speed and physicality to keep up with the two Serbian strikers. Was quite comfortable playing out of the back and not fazed by the occasional high press. 

Eray Cömert: 5.5/10- Quite poor considering the occasion, was outdone by both of Serbia’s strikers on occasion. Despite being tidy and pragmatic in possession, the centre-back was at times clumsy with his defending and gave away a penalty as well.

Edimilson Fernandes: 7/10- Very active down the right flank and made some great crosses which his teammates could have done better with. Needed to be slightly better with his corners on the night. 

Midfielders

Remo Freuler: 7/10- A very mature performance from the midfielder who did well to find his teammates in good positions. Found an assist having gotten into a good spot inside the Serbian box and nearly scored on another occasion as well. 

Granit Xhaka: 7/10- Very active throughout and covered every blade of grass, trying to win back possession and play it out to the flanks. Did not pull out anything too spectacular, but kept things simple and effective, progressing the play and getting stuck in whenever he needed to. 

Zeki Amdouni: 8.5/10- Had a productive day in midfield, finding spaces to set up his teammates and popping up in great spots to try and find the goal. Despite a massive chance missed, kept his head in the game and ended up scoring an important goal. Most importantly, he managed to play with the same intensity and hunger even after scoring. 

Attackers

Noah Okafor: 6/10- Slightly careless in possession and lacked the cutting edge to try and break through the Serbian defence. Missed what was arguably the easiest chance of the game, a sitter from close range, which would have given his side an important first-half lead.

Fabian Rieder: 7/10- Was quite busy down the right-hand side and tried to find a teammate in a good position. Despite his good work in the first half, Rieder faded quickly in the second half and his replacement was much more noticeable. 

Breel Embolo: 6/10- Energetic and put in the hard yards but lacked the finishing touch that his side quite desperately required today. Despite getting into good positions, Embolo struggled to get a hold of the ball, with his first touch letting him down at times.  

Substitutes

Dereck Kutesa: 6/10- Direct and lively with his approach, despite being unable to find much success. Understood the need to try and take risks but was unfortunately not able to deliver as well as he would have hoped. 

Joël Monteiro: 6/10- Showed some liveliness and slick movement right off the bat and seemed as though he could find something for his side. Missed an absolute sitter, which could have turned out to be an important goal for his side. 

Andi Zeqiri: N/A

Kevin Mbabu: N/A

Ulisses Garcia: N/A

Manager

Murat Yakin: 6/10 – Set his side up well and even made changes at the right time. However, his inability to rectify defensive frailties and tunnel vision in trying to find another goal, is what led to his side being relegated today. 

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Serbia Player Ratings vs Switzerland

Goalkeeper

Đorđe Petrović: 7/10 – Extremely good today with his shot-stopping. Made an unbelievable save from close range which left many stunned. Was a little unlucky with the goal, owing to the crowd of players in front of him. Was surprisingly very inaccurate with his passing and distribution today.

Defenders

Srđan Babić: 6/10- Had an average performance, at times struggling to keep up with the right-sided Swiss attackers. Was stern in his tackles and went for every tackle wholeheartedly. Was quite unlucky to come off injured at the end of the first half. 

Nikola Milenković: 7/10- Solid in defence and was not letting up despite a lot of pressure from the Swiss attackers. Might have been outdone on one singular occasion but was on the job for most of the game.

Miloš Veljković: 6/10-Struggled quite a fair bit throughout the game, especially after being switched to the left side after halftime. Needed to be bailed out by a teammate on a few occasions and was lacking the awareness needed at times.

Midfielders

Aleksa Terzić: 8/10- Had an all-round solid performance which saw him deliver some beautiful crosses in the first half, and a lot of hard running coupled with a delicate, picturesque finish in the second half to secure his country’s position in the League group. 

Nemanja Gudelj: 6/10- Quite a middling performance from the midfielder who found it difficult to grow into the game and was in and out of it from time to time. Despite spells where he seemed quite active and helped his team progress, there were times when he seemed quite anonymous as well. 

Nemanja Maksimović: 6.6/10- Was well involved in trying to get his side forward and while the Swiss pressured, did his part in helping mop up any loose balls, easing the burden on the backline to the best of his abilities. Seemed willing to get on the ball and make things happen.

Andrija Živković: 7/10- Was up and down on the right flank and was given the license to venture forward. Showed some great touches and slickness in possession, helping his team navigate out of tricky spots. Despite not being the best defensively, he made up for it with his offensive contribution and passing. 

Lazar Samardžić: 6/10- Willing but not quite able to find the level and amount of impact he was likely looking to have today. Pressed high and fast, but was unable to be the link to the attack in midfield. Did put his teammates through in a few instances. 

Attackers

Aleksandar Mitrović: 6.5/10- Played like his usual bullish self, occasionally showing off some slick dribbling at times, which also led to him winning a very important penalty, which he then went on to miss. 

Dušan Vlahović: 8.5/10- Slightly over-eager at times but was very adept at finding himself in key positions to score. Did well to threaten the defence and nearly notched a worldie. Having been wasteful and slow at times, Vlahovic was selfless and aware enough to put his teammate through, who ended up scoring the equalizer.

Substitutes

Nemanja Stojić: 7/10- Solidified the right-hand side since coming on in the second half. Was competitive in his duels and showed a keen eye for an over-the-line pass, which put his teammates in a great position to try and make something happen. 

Mirko Topić: N/A

Kosta Nedeljković: N/A

Saša Zdjelar: N/A

Manager

Dragan Stojković: 7/10- Has done well to set up his side so far in the tournament, but will need to work on getting the best out of his attackers. Should have made more substitutions earlier which possibly could have prevented his side from conceding the goal. 

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