After 120 scoreless minutes and a tense penalty shootout, Switzerland became the final team to advance to the quarterfinals at the 2026 FIFA World Cup as it outlasted Colombia.
BC Place Vancouver was a sea of yellow as it was firmly behind Colombia, and the large crowd watched both teams play fantastically defensively on Tuesday afternoon.
Both Colombia and Switzerland came into this tournament with one knockout win in their respective histories.
Colombia's win came in 2014 against Uruguay, while Switzerland’s came over Germany in 1938.
After wins in the round of 32, both teams had the chance to make this the undisputed best World Cup in their country’s history.
In the end, that went to Switzerland, which has been on a steady rise over the past decade and will now get to face reigning champions Argentina in the quarterfinals.
Here are my four takeaways from Tuesday's match: 1.
Extremely Tight Defense Both Colombia and Switzerland were playing well heading into this game, with each team winning its respective group (both teams were 2-1-0 in group play) followed by impressive victories in the round of 32.
The heart of success for each team had been its defensive discipline and shape.
Combined with the high amount of respect the teams had for each other, it made for a very cagey start with each team quick to revert into defensive shape whenever possession was lost.
The game needed an individual moment of brilliance, but neither team seemed willing to take the risk of committing many players into the attack.
Colombia’s Gustavo Puerta had the first real chance of the game in the 21st minute when he forced a big save from Gregor Kobel.
The game began to open slightly after the first half hydration break.
Colombia’s Camilo Vargas was forced to make a pair of saves from Swiss wingers Dan Ndoye and Fabian Rieder just after the half-hour mark.
In the second half, Colombia began to push a little further up, and head coach Néstor Lorenzo made offensive substitutes in the 66th and 83rd minutes.
Switzerland had slightly more space to operate but was unable to create in the first 90 minutes.
As is the case with low-scoring games, it is not just about defense.
There was also a failure for players to step up and make the big play that no one saw coming.
Switzerland clearly missed Johan Manzambi, who suffered a knee injury in the team’s final training session.
The 20-year-old versatile Freiburg attacker has been Switzerland’s best player over the past three games with three goals and two assists.
The game finished 120 minutes with just three shots on goal for Colombia and two for Switzerland.
Not Many Mistakes This is hardly the first time that a World Cup match was very defensive, but what made this game very different is that there were just very few mistakes by either team.
Teams completed passes inside their own half to avoid gifting the opponents golden chances.
There were not many teams that gave dangerous set pieces; defensive clearances were effective in getting the ball from danger.
Credit for this is due to the exceptional play of the central defenders for both teams.
Switzerland’s Manuel Akanji and Nico Elvedi, along with Colombia’s Davinson Sánchez and Jhon Lucumí, were all excellent and handled everything that came their way.
Lucumí nearly broke the deadlock in extra time when his header rattled the crossbar in the closest opportunity of the game.
Meanwhile, the Swiss backline was able to neutralize Luis Díaz, who is one of the best wingers in the world.
Oddly enough, the worst miss in the game came in the 115th minute when the game’s most experienced and dependable midfielder Swiss captain Granit Xhaka, flubbed a clearance and gifted Jaminton Campaz a golden chance, which was then shot over the bar.
Confident Swiss Penalty Takers When the game went to penalties, it was completely up for grabs, but Switzerland converted four of five attempts with confidence.
The only Swiss player who missed was Manuel Akanji, who had a great game in central defense.
This time, his Swiss teammates were able to bail him out after he missed a shootout attempt in a loss to England in the knockout stage at UEFA Euro 2024.
Throughout extra time, it seemed as if Switzerland was the team that was more comfortable with the game going to a shootout.
That was a bold strategy, and it paid off as Granit Xhaka, Zeki Amdouni, Cedric Itten and Rubén Vargas all looked strong with their attempts.
Best Swiss Team In History With its run to the quarterfinals, this is the best Swiss team in the program’s history, and this run has been a long time coming.
Head coach Murat Yakin has been the architect of the team’s success, which has seen it as one of Europe’s most improved teams in the past two decades.
Now in the quarterfinals of the World Cup, Yakin has Switzerland playing consistently well in major tournaments.
Switzerland performed brilliantly in World Cup qualifying, as it didn't lose a game.
The Swiss also scored 14 goals and conceded just twice during qualifying.
Yakin took over in 2021 and led the team to qualification for the 2022 World Cup.
At the World Cup in Qatar, Switzerland advanced to the round of 16.
At Euro 2024, Switzerland took it another step further in defeating reigning champions Italy in the round of 16 before losing to England in a shootout in the quarterfinals.
Yankin has opted for experience in building his team, and against Colombia, no outfield player in the starting lineup had fewer than 31 caps.
Despite a poor start to the tournament against Qatar, Yakin has his team playing well and as a manager, he has done a fantastic job taking his team to the next level.
Sources: Fox Sports
