For the test matches against the USA and Mexico in June, national team coach Murat Yakin has called up 19-year-old Johan Manzambi for the first time. The "exotics" Lucas Blondel and Stefan Gartenmann are also back in the squad.
Manzambi has long been regarded as a great young talent. He joined the youth team of Bundesliga club Freiburg from Servette at the start of 2023. This season, the attacker made his first appearances in Germany's top division and even earned a regular place in the final spurt of the championship, scoring two goals in the process. Freiburg will play in the Europa League next season thanks to their 5th place finish.
In March, Manzambi played with the U21s against Austria and England, scoring a goal in the 2:2 draw against the British side. Now he is set to show his attacking qualities for the first time in the senior national team. Coach Yakin's team will take part in the main rehearsal for the World Cup qualifiers in the USA in the fall. On June 7 (10 p.m. Swiss time), they will play Mexico in Salt Lake City, and on June 11 (2 a.m. Swiss time), they will face the USA in Nashville.
Door "still open" for Shaqiri
Compared to the test match dates in March, team leaders Granit Xhaka, who became a father for the third time in the spring and took a break, and Manuel Akanji, who was injured, return to the squad. Nico Elvedi, Ardon Jashari, Isaac Schmidt and the "exotics" Stefan Gartenmann and Lucas Blondel are also part of the 26-man squad that will travel to the USA.
Gartenmann and Blondel, like Schmidt, made their debut for the Swiss national team in March. They are part of the defense, which is significantly larger in the current squad of eleven players than in previous groupings.
Xherdan Shaqiri and Christian Fassnacht, who have shone in the Swiss league, are not in the squad. Shaqiri retired from the national team after Euro 2024, but has impressed with outstanding performances for FC Basel this season. "We have respected his retirement. For me, the door is still open for Shaqiri," said Yakin.
