England will face Switzerland in the quarter-finals of UEFA Euro 2024 in Dusseldorf on Saturday. The Three Lions scored two late goals to edge past Slovakia, while Switzerland edged out Italy in the round of 16. England are on a 12-game unbeaten run against the Swiss.
England Form
England came into this tournament having topped their qualifying group. A 1-0 loss to Iceland in a Euro 2014 friendly was a warning sign. Their performances in the tournament were generally poor. A 1-0 win over Serbia was followed by a 1-1 draw with Denmark, in which they conceded 18 shots.
A 0-0 draw with Slovenia in their final group match yielded just 0.80 xG despite having 70% possession. In the last 16, Gareth Southgate’s side were outclassed by Slovakia but equalised in the 95th minute and then scored the winning goal in extra time to progress to the last eight.
English Team News
Gareth Southgate will be without the suspended Marc Guehi in defence, with Ezri Konsa expected to start. Kobbie Mainoo excelled against Slovakia and will retain his place in midfield.
Further forward, Cole Palmer continues to push for a starting position, with Bukayo Saka the most at risk. Ivan Toney made a good impact off the bench in the last game, but is likely to remain among the substitutes.
England Motivation
The motivation and commitment of the players is visible. However, Southgate is a conservative coach and will not play an expansive game.
The Three Lions lack cohesion and may once again have to rely on their strong bench. Target man Ivan Toney could be a key figure in the second half.
Switzerland Form
Since their 6-1 thrashing by Portugal at the 2022 World Cup, Switzerland have lost just once in 16 matches. After five games without a win (with four draws), they started the Euros with two friendly wins and a 1-1 draw against Austria. They started Euro 2024 with a convincing 3-1 win against Hungary, outscoring their opponents 15-6.
A surprise 1-1 draw with Scotland followed, before a 92nd-minute leak against Germany in their final Group A match to finish in second place. The Swiss were excellent in the round of 16, beating Italy 2-0, outscoring the Azzurri 10-1 in the first half and making it 2-0 in the 46th minute.
Switzerland Team News
Coach Murat Yakin has a very solid core in his team in a 3-4-3 formation. The back three, central midfielder two and number nine will not change in this match. The big selection question is right back.
Silvan Widmer played on the right against Germany with Dan Ndoye in the front three. Against Italy, Ndoye moved to the right-back role with the speedy Ruben Vargas starting in the front three. Xherdan Shaqiri will once again be one of the substitutes.
Switzerland Motivation
The Swiss play from the back and have a strong presence with their front three as soon as their opponents are eliminated.
They are also able to sit deep and keep things compact without the ball, which was shown against Germany.
Key Statistics
England have conceded less than 1.5 goals in 3 of their last 5 games
England are ranked 5th in the FIFA rankings, while Switzerland is ranked 19th
Switzerland have lost only 1 of their last 16 games (9 draws in the last 15)
Switzerland are without a win in 12 games against England
Pronunciation
We have a very exciting affair ahead of us. It is hard to imagine that this match will need extra time.
Best Bet: England to Qualify at 1.58
Value Bet: Draw (90 min) at 2.95
Tip for the correct score: England 1-1 Switzerland with 5.50
James is a football analyst who writes about PSL and English Premier League tactics. He holds the UEFA A coaching license and has previously worked for several clubs in analysis roles.Twitter: https://twitter.com/footy_analysis
