First showdown with Jordan

Is Switzerland ready for the World Cup in Canada, Mexico and the USA? It seems unlikely that there will be an answer to this question on Sunday. After all, the week in St. Gallen was more of a relaxed warm-up than a meticulous preparation. This was due to the fact that the players arrived at the camp in eastern Switzerland in dribs and drabs. Most of those who were still in action on the Whitsun weekend only joined the team on Thursday. Among them are the key players Granit Xhaka, Remo Freuler, Manuel Akanji and Ricardo Rodriguez.

It would therefore come as a surprise if Murat Yakin were to send out the eleven players on Sunday who he will be relying on in the first group game at the World Cup. Instead, the Swiss national team coach is likely to use the clash with World Cup debutants Jordan to test a number of players from the second tier. This may well be the last opportunity for them to get as many World Cup minutes as possible.

The second test match will take place in San Diego on Saturday, June 6. The clash with Australia is likely to be used as a dress rehearsal for the World Cup opener against Qatar a week later.

Opportunity for Muheim and Co.

Nevertheless, it is important for the team to start the World Cup campaign with a positive result. Especially as the Swiss are still lacking their first win of the year after two test matches in the spring (3:4 against Germany, 0:0 against Norway). You can feel that the energy is different again compared to other matches, said Miro Muheim in the run-up. "The anticipation is extremely high."

Muheim about injury shock

"I was really shaking and was afraid it was something bad"

The Hamburger SV left-back is one of the players who was already called up on Monday and can hope to play for a longer period on Sunday. In any case, he has digested the ankle injury Muheim suffered a month ago well. "I'm ready and hope to play," said the 28-year-old, who is one of HSV's top performers and crowd favorites, but usually plays the backup role behind Ricardo Rodriguez in the national team.

Muheim is also hoping for a call-up because he has already gained a lot of positive experience in this stadium. He made his breakthrough during his three years at FC St. Gallen before venturing abroad.

Switzerland with a strong record in St. Gallen

The same applies to the national team: they generally feel at home in St. Gallen. On Sunday, the team has the opportunity to extend its current unbeaten streak in this stadium to ten games. In general, the record in the arena, which opened in 2008, is impressive: There have been 14 wins and only two defeats in 21 games so far.

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Sunday will be the first ever meeting between the Swiss and Jordanian national football teams. The Swiss, who are ranked 19th in the world, will be looking to live up to their role as favorites against the team from the Middle Eastern kingdom (ranked 63rd). The match kicks off at 3.00 pm. It is a small foretaste of the Swiss group games in North America, which start at 12.00 noon local time.

After the test, the players can enjoy a day off before the flight to San Diego on Tuesday. There, the national team will move into base camp and have enough time to get used to the local conditions.