The Swiss national team put in a strong performance overall in their 4:1 win against Sweden, but not everyone was convincing. Four insights from the penultimate game of the World Cup qualifiers.
17.11.2025, 05:00
17.11.2025, 07:06
SDA
Rodriguez has a bad day for once
He has been a constant in the national team for years, and on Saturday Ricardo Rodriguez played his 134th international match. That is the second-highest figure after record player Xhaka (142). The left-back has achieved this impressive number because he always performs with the national team without any fuss. Since 2014, "the eternal Rodriguez" has also played practically every game at the World Cup and European Championship finals (26 in total) over the full distance.
It is therefore noticeable when his performance does not match the team's overall impression. At the Stade de Genève, Rodriguez was just as unconvincing in tackles as he was in attacking moves. Several of his balls, especially long passes, do not find their target. However, the 33-year-old has been struggling recently and trained individually at the start of the week. He was not quite in rhythm, says coach Murat Yakin about the Betis Sevilla player. It would therefore come as no surprise if Rodriguez were to take one of his rare breaks against Kosovo on Tuesday.
Manzambi presses, but the competition is strong
He's scoring again: Although he is usually only substituted, Johan Manzambi has already scored three goals after seven international matches. The 20-year-old impresses with his technique and attacking drive. "It's a bit of a shame that he takes on a more defensive role at Freiburg," says Yakin, who has mainly deployed Manzambi as an outside attacker so far. However, Ruben Vargas and Dan Ndoye are set in these positions. They underlined their value against Sweden in particular, not least when Ndoye scored the 3:1 goal following an assist from Vargas.
So is Manzambi the golden joker for the time being or will he soon get the chance to play a competitive game from the start? "We have to build him up carefully," said Yakin at the post-match press conference. "He has all the prerequisites for the starting line-up, but we have strong attacking players who know the processes." Fabian Rieder was the only one of them to go a little under the radar on Saturday: He will have a tough time against the Swedes, who are compact in the center. "Johan is on a good path, we are very happy about his development," Yakin states. But the national team coach doesn't want to rush things.
Aebischer shows a lot of running and some uncertainties
The big question of the evening was: who would replace the injured Remo Freuler, who missed another game for the Swiss national team after 40 competitive appearances in a row? Yakin opted for Michel Aebischer - a choice that came as little surprise, as the 28-year-old had played a central role at the last European Championship.
Aebischer, who has been playing for Serie A promotion side Pisa since this season, experienced a game with highs and lows in Geneva. On the one hand, he impressed with his running ability, but on the other, he occasionally lacked the composure that characterizes Freuler. Even when conceding the only goal of the evening, Aebischer briefly loses sight of his opponent. Nevertheless, Yakin was satisfied: "It wasn't easy for him, the Swedes completely closed down the center," said the national coach. "But the longer the game went on, the better he was in it. He showed strong tackling skills and was consistent in his duels."
Freuler will not replace Aebischer, who harmonizes too well with captain Granit Xhaka for that. But Aebischer has clearly confirmed his place in the team.
Embolo's dream year - in the national team
Scored a goal and won a penalty: Breel Embolo also showed against Sweden why he has become indispensable in the center of the attack. With 22 goals, he is now level with Josef Hügi and Charles Antenen in the all-time goalscorer list; only eight Swiss players have more goals to their name.
However, his goal tally in 2025 shows that Embolo is struggling a little more at club level: While he has seven goals in nine appearances for the national team so far, he has just six goals in Ligue 1. The 28-year-old moved from Monaco to Rennes in the summer. He started there as a regular, but had to make do with the wild card role in the last three games. Nevertheless, he scored the winning goal in his most recent league outing - a signal that he is also working his way forward at the club again. This is important for Yakin, because unlike in other positions, his options up front are limited.
