Serbia are currently on the top of the group table, but the Swiss have more reasons to be happy. This team has managed to hold Brazil to a draw, while Serbia still have to face the 5-time world champions in the third round. For this reason, it’s of utmost importance for Serbia to win on Friday evening, or at least, not lose to the Swiss. Who’s gonna be the happier side after the ref blows the final whistle at the Kaliningrad Stadium? Find out in this match preview!
Serbia
Saying that Serbia were impressive against Costa Rica would be an overstatement, but they weren’t bad. They had a fair amount of chances, although they failed to take advantage of. They also did very well defensively, keeping Costa Rica’s forwards away from the goal.
But, they’re facing a much tougher challenge this time. If Costa Rica were tough to break, imagine how hard it’s going to be to beat the defense of Switzerland. And you can be sure that Switzerland are going to defend in this game. After all, they face Costa Rica in the last round, so even a draw against Serbia would mean a lot to them.
But Serbia can’t do much with a draw, as they’re facing Brazil in the final game of the group stage. As that’s a kind of match they’re expected to lose, Serbia need to give their best and try to beat Switzerland on Friday. Winning this match would mean booking a place in the Round of 16.
Serbia definitely have individual player quality to beat Switzerland. Their captain, Kolarov, scored an amazing free kick in the previous match, bringing his team all three points against Costa Rica. Serbia are extremely dangerous from set-pieces, not only because they have a free-kick expert like Kolarov in the team, but also because they’re very good in the air. Actually, on average, they’re the tallest team at the World Cup.
Switzerland
Last Sunday, Switzerland achieved one of the biggest feats in their football history. They managed to avoid losing to Brazil, the number 1 favorite for winning this tournament. They put a really impressive defensive performance in that match, although many think that they were too rough. They committed a total of 10 fouls only on Neymar and even the goal they scored came after a kind of rough play.
They are probably hoping to do the same against Serbia, but the things are a little bit different now. Serbia are a much more physical team than Brazil, who rely on technical skills. That said, you can be sure that the Serbs are going to kick back. What this means is that it wouldn’t be a big surprise if we saw tons of bookings on this match.
One guy that would’ve been booked probably is Valon Behrami, the player who kicked Neymar so many times on Sunday evening. But, Behrami is out of the team due to a groin injury. It’s not yet 100% sure that he’s going to miss the game, but even if he recovers, he won’t be completely fit. The rest of the Swiss are ready for the match.
Possible Lineups
Serbia:
Stojkovic – Milenkovic, Tosic, Ivanovic, Kolarov – Matic, Milivojevic, Milinkovic-Savic, Tadic, Ljajic – Mitrovic
Switzerland:
Sommer – Schar, Elvedi, Lichtsteiner, Rodriguez – Xhaka, Zakaria, Fernandes, Džemaili, Shaqiri – Seferović
Serbia vs. Switzerland Match Prediction
It’s going to be a tough match, there’s no doubt about that. The Swiss managed to stop Brazil from scoring more than once and they plan to do something similar this Friday too. That said, we probably won’t see too many goals here, but which team is going to win is very difficult to predict. At this point, a draw seems like the most likely outcome.
Serbia vs. Switzerland Betting Tips
- Under 2.5 Goals @2.60 (Unibet)
- Draw @3.10 (bet365)