Slovenia 0-0 Switzerland: Goalless, fiercely contested clash; Sturm’s goal ruled out for offside

Game is over and the final score is Slovenia 0-0 Switzerland. Switzerland dropped points for the first time in the fifth round of the Nations League. However, the 0-0 draw in Maribor against Slovenia was enough for Murat Yakin's team to secure early promotion to League A.

Match Report:

“Play it safe, maybe come out on top”: The Swiss players took Coach Murat Yakin’s advice only partially to heart on Friday evening at Ljudski vrt Stadium. On the well-maintained field, they kept the ball moving and clearly dominated the game. However, the visitors were unable to score a goal—just as they had failed to do during World Cup qualifying, when they played a 0–0 draw in the capital city of Ljubljana exactly 13 months ago.

Xhaka and Manzambi are sorely missed

The Swiss team clearly lacked creativity. Murat Yakin’s squad was unable to compensate for the injury-related absences of playmaker Granit Xhaka and, above all, the dynamic Johan Manzambi. Just as in Lucerne against North Macedonia—when the young player from Geneva had initially been rested—he was sorely missed in northeastern Slovenia as well.

In the final third, the team lacked creative spark and the element of surprise; time and again, their attacks came to nothing. Symbolically, a long-range shot by Michel Aebischer just before halftime was the Swiss team’s most dangerous play of the first half. Jan Oblak, however, tipped the ball over the crossbar.

Embolo Fails to Make an Impact

Breel Embolo, in particular, struggled during his return to the national team. The Slovenian defenders shut down the Swiss forward, who was left hanging in the air and wore himself out against the packed defense. His day was over after an hour. Zeki Amdouni also failed to make much of an impact after that.

As expected, the Slovenians played from a solid defensive base and made life difficult for the Swiss. They waited for counterattacks—and successfully capitalized on one just shy of a half-hour into the game. However, since there had been an offside in the build-up, Aljosa Matko’s goal was rightly disallowed. Otherwise, the home team was limited to half-chances.

For their part, the Swiss came close to scoring the game-winning goal just one more time. After launching a counterattack of their own and receiving a pass from Amdouni, Dan Ndoye’s shot rolled just centimeters past the left post.

Group Victory Sealed

As a result, Switzerland fell short of its goal of a fifth consecutive competitive victory. It would have been a first under Murat Yakin, who was on the sidelines for his 70th match as national team coach. Still, by earning a point, Switzerland secured first place in the group ahead of schedule and thus promotion to League A.

On Monday, Yakin's team will face Scotland in St. Gallen in their final international match of the year, marking the conclusion of the Nations League.

Match Events

0' The match is about to start!

8' Match Event for Slovenia vs Switzerland

23' Highlight from Slovenia vs Switzerland

24' Match Event for Slovenia vs Switzerland

29' Highlight from Slovenia vs Switzerland

34' Match Event for Slovenia vs Switzerland

43' Highlight from Slovenia vs Switzerland

51' Match Event for Slovenia vs Switzerland

65' Match Event for Slovenia vs Switzerland

84' Highlight from Slovenia vs Switzerland

Line-ups

Slovenia XI: Oblak, Zan Karnicnik, Adam Gnezda Cerin, Jaka Bijol, Mark Zabukovnik, Danijel Sturm, Zan Zaletel, Vanja Drkusic, Aljosa Matko, Zan Vipotnik, Srdjan Kuzmic

Subs: Benjamin Verbic, Andraz Sporar, Sandi Lovrić, Zan Celar, Matevz Vidovsek, Jost Urbancic, Tomi Horvat, David Brekalo, Igor Vekic, Tjas Begic, Adrian Zeljkovic, Relja Obrić

Switzerland XI: Freuler, Elvedi, Embolo, Akanji, Kobel, Zakaria, Michel Aebischer, Dan Ndoye, Fabian Rieder, Zachary Athekame, Sascha Britschgi

Subs: Rodriguez, Mvogo, Cedric Itten, Sow, Eray Cömert, Samuel Ballet, Adrian Bajrami, Ardon Jashari, Zeki Amdouni, Marvin Keller, Isaac Schmidt, Alvyn Sanches