Avdullahu turns his back on Switzerland

Avdullahu and the Kosovan association president Agim Ademi made the change of nation public on Monday evening via Instagram. The SFA followed up with a statement on Tuesday. "Leon has informed us of his decision. We are disappointed that he now wants to take a different path," director Pierluigi Tami was quoted as saying. We are very aware of the issue of possible changes of nation and have been confronted with it on several occasions. "But I also make it clear that we only want those players in our national teams who identify one hundred percent with our country and our national team," said Tami.

Last week, the SFA already lost the tug-of-war over a talented player. The 18-year-old Swiss junior international Eman Kospo from AC Fiorentina opted for a change of nation and will play for Bosnia in future.

Avdullahu, who moved from FC Basel to TSG Hoffenheim this summer, had been playing for Switzerland since the U15s and was about to make his debut for the senior team. Now the U-turn. The interesting thing is that Avdullahu could make his debut for Kosovo against Switzerland of all teams. The two nations will meet in Basel on September 5 to kick off the World Cup qualifiers.