The fact that there is a slight sense of disappointment among the Swiss despite their victory at the Yellow Cup underlines the team's higher expectations. The team seems ready for the European Championships.
12.01.2026, 05:00
12.01.2026, 06:53
SDA
With seven seconds left on the clock, North Macedonia managed to equalize at 29:29 and the Swiss started quickly, determined to score the winning goal. The disappointment is palpable that they do not succeed. The draw was enough to win the Yellow Cup in Winterthur for the tenth time. That speaks volumes for the team's attitude.
"Our standards have risen in recent years," says national coach Andy Schmid. "I have the highest expectations of myself and expect the same from the players - and they have. Our development steps are getting smaller and smaller, so you have to work hard for them. Otherwise we will remain at the current level."
Cool head in the hot phase
The "final game" against North Macedonia underlines that the team has moved on. After a very strong first half (18:13), little came together for the Swiss for several minutes in the second half. After leading 25:21 (47'), they fell behind 26:27 (54') - and the North Macedonians were given a huge boost by their numerous fans.
Yet the home side kept a cool head. "When a team collapses like that, it's usually difficult to pull the game back in your favor," explained Schmid. "It shows that we have a lot of quality, but the five or six mistakes really get on my nerves."
Lenny Rubin, one of the team leaders, expressed the same sentiment: "We're certainly frustrated, as we were clearly the better team for a long time. We may have won the Yellow Cup, but we didn't win the game. We're all here in the national team because we want to win every game. Against opponents like those at this tournament (in addition to North Macedonia, the Swiss faced Ukraine/38:27 and Bahrain/33:30), we must now have the confidence to beat everyone." It should be noted that the previous seven games against North Macedonia were all lost.
Many can make the difference
The draw came about thanks to a cohesive team performance without anyone having to rise above themselves. That also underlines the development. Many members of the team are now capable of making the difference. "Of course there is a core that gets a bigger share of the game," says Rubin. But they are now so broadly based that they can change without any loss of quality if someone is not performing so well. This was also evident against North Macedonia, when Mehdi Ben Romdhane, who only came on as a substitute in the final phase, scored the last three goals.
Rubin scored almost twice as many goals as the second-best scorer in the Swiss team, Luka Maros (21 goals), in their very strong 11th place at last year's World Cup with 40 goals. If someone else shines this time, he wouldn't mind. "We've really grown together as a team, everyone loves coming here. For me, we've become a family, and I think many others feel the same way. That's why there will be more to come from us, I'm 100 percent convinced of that," says Rubin.
Zehnder as if he had never been away
A big plus compared to the World Cup is the return of director Manuel Zehnder, who tore the cruciate ligament in his left knee at the Yellow Cup last year. Now he made his comeback at the same venue. And how: He scored eight goals in the first game against Ukraine. "That was my goal. I said: 'When I play again, I want to play fully'. I think we did quite well," said the 26-year-old. Schmid said of his impressive return: "If there's anyone I'm not surprised by, it's Manuel Zehnder. The fact that he's playing as if he'd never been away was to be expected with him."
The prospects for the European Championship, which begins next Thursday, are therefore promising. The Swiss' first opponent will be the Faroe Islands on Friday. Then there should be no more disappointed faces.
