Saturday, June 11, 2016

EURO 2016 Xhak-attack to dominate Albania-Switzerland clash>>>






SPORT DADDY NEWS SPORT



In what is an intriguing sub-plot ahead of Saturday's Euro 2016 game in Lens, new Arsenal signing Granit Xhaka is on course to battle it out with his brother, Taulant, at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis Stadium.

The elegant Switzerland anchor admitted to 'weird feelings' when the draw was made, but the siblings will put family allegiances to one side for what is sure to be a fiercely contested midfield battle.

Gazzetta World note that a talented Swiss side finished second to England in qualification, and for their ambitious manager, at least, the goal could not be clearer: Vladimir Petkovic hopes to have qualified for the Round of 16 by the time they face France in the final game and will accept no less than three points against a combative but limited Albania team.

 Injuries and Suspensions

As is to be expected, both nations come into the encounter with relatively clean bills of health.

Leicester City midfielder Gokhan Inler was a surprise omission after captaining the Swiss throughout the qualifying phase, while there also remains some doubt as to who will start up front for the Nati, with Basel sensation Breel Embolo competing against the more established Haris Seferovi for the lone striking berth.

Albania, too, can choose from a fully fit pool of players and will most likely keep faith with the same system and players that saw them through to their inaugural European Championship appearance.

 History

The history books make ominous reading for an Albania side about to make their major tournament debut.

Their record of five defeats and one draw in six matches against Switzerland makes for grim reading indeed and will be a cause for concern ahead of the fixture.

The teams' most recent encounters took place in 2014 World Cup qualifying, with the Swiss triumphant home and away.

Xherdan Shaqiri, himself of Albanian origin, scored in both matches and will almost certainly assume the mantle of bogeyman for the minnows.
 Player to Watch: Xherdan Shaqiri

Xhaka may be the obvious candidate in light of his recent transfer, but Stoke City playmaker Shaqiri is the one who really makes the Swiss tick in the attacking third.

As Switzerland's midfield trio are very much confined to disciplined holding roles, the former Inter player carries a substantial creative burden in Petkovic's side, so expect Shaqiri to be at the hub of all that is good about Switzerland's offensive play.
Albania, though, will fancy their chances of causing an upset if he fails to fire.

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