Even the day after the penalty shoot-out elimination has not yet been fully digested. Nevertheless, national team director Pierluigi Tami considers the European Championship in Germany a success.
Pierluigi Tami, how do you rate the tournament?
"The game against England still hurts. We're sad because we were so close to success. At the same time, I'm proud of how the team presented itself throughout the tournament. It was fun to see how the team celebrated football. This enthusiasm was also transferred to the fans, who gave us fantastic support."
How did the team develop?
"No matter who we played, we always played our football, we always had a plan. The quality and intensity were very high right from the start. And even yesterday I had the feeling that the players' legs were still fresh. It's a shame that it didn't work out in the penalty shoot-out in the end."
For the third time in a row, the European Championship ended for Switzerland in a penalty shoot-out. Does the association place too little value on this?
"I don't think we have a fundamental problem with penalties. We had four shooters on Saturday, all of whom shot on goal. Three times the ball ended up in the net, and once the England goalkeeper made an important save. Three years ago, our players missed three times, so we've already made progress."
Several players in the squad are over 30 years old. Are there any players who have already told you they might retire?
"No, it's still too early for that. Right now, it's all about the players coming to terms with what has happened. The coach will ultimately decide who will be involved in the future. But at the moment we still have all the players from the European Championship squad at our disposal."
You have already stated that Murat Yakin is plan A for the coaching position. Is plan B with Giorgio Contini already on the staff?
"We are very happy with both Murat and Giorgio. And we very much hope that we can continue with both of them as a team. We will discuss this in the next few days."
