Who will take a penalty for the Nati after Shaqiri's retirement? The question catches Yakin on the wrong foot. "In the end, captain Xhaka will decide on the pitch who scores," says the coach.
At the press conference before the Denmark game, Murat Yakin was caught on the wrong foot by the question of which player would take a penalty after Xherdan Shaqiri's withdrawal. The national team coach studies the situation for a long time, puzzles over it and then says: "Penalty? Mean question."
Next to him, Gregor Kobel raises his hand, causing laughter. The new number 1 in the Nati goal offers himself as the penalty taker.
Yakin: "In the end, the captain decides"
It's not that far-fetched if you listen to Yakin's comments. He says: "In the end, the captain decides. If Xhaka doesn't feel well, he's welcome to choose someone else. In the end, the captain decides during the game who shoots."
A captain who decides the penalty taker during the game? Not an everyday solution, to say the least ...
With Fabian Schär and Shaqiri, two of the four penalty takers in the penalty shoot-out against England at the European Championship have now retired, Manuel Akanji was the only one to miss in the quarter-final.
As a reminder: Granit Xhaka himself suffered the same fate in the penalty shoot-out against Poland in the 2016 European Championship round of 16. Ricardo Rodriguez, once a regular penalty taker for the national team, has not scored for some time now after several failed attempts.
So it will be interesting to see who takes the responsibility tonight at the Parken Stadium if a penalty is awarded. Xhaka himself? Embolo? Or maybe Kobel after all? He's already made an appearance.
