Switzerland have opened their Euro 2016 campaign with a narrow 1-0 win over 10-man Albania in a tight affair in Lens on Tuesday.
It took just five minutes for the more experienced Switzerland to assume control of the match. Fabian Schär headed home after Albania goalkeeper Etrit Berisha stormed off his line, only to flap at the ball and misjudge its flight completely, leaving a gaping goal to be exposed. Lorik Cana only steepened the mountain his side was faced with climbing, sent off in the 37th minute for a pair a clumsy bookable offences.
Switzerland may have found themselves further in front after a plethora of opportunities for Haris Seferovic and Blerim Dzemaili, but Berisha recovered from his earlier mishap to stand tall and keep the score at 1-0.
The Eagles regained a toehold of the match and may even have stolen a point, but could not find the opportunity that would beat Sommer with Switzerland holding on for a slender victory.
No beginner’s luck for Albania
They say beginners get all the luck, but sadly for Euro debutants Albania, the same could not be said about them. Kuq e Zinjte began their first ever Euro campaign in the worst fashion possible, conceding in just the fifth minute at a corner – an area that had been a weakness of theirs right throughout their successful qualifying campaign.
Berisha’s error was perhaps an indicator of some butterflies flying through the Albania camp, somewhat understandably so in a maiden major tournament. Still, the mistake was costly and their task was made even tougher when captain and lynchpin Cana was handed his marching orders and a mandatory one-match ban for a duo of careless yellow cards, the second for a blatant hand ball on the edge of the Switzerland penalty area.
Yet failure on the day was not through a lack of endeavour. Albania toiled hard and enjoyed positive patches of their own, particularly at the start of the second half, but were simply outclassed by the battle-hardened Swiss.
Berisha brilliant after early blunder while Sommer stars
It is a crying shame for Albania that it took some time for them to settle into the big occasion. Goalkeeper Berisha proved a case in point, indecisively flailing at a Switzerland delivery in the opening five minutes to gift La Nati the early advantage.
But following the gaff, the Lazio shot-stopper regained his composure and commanded his area expertly, making a number of crucial saves to ensure a glimmer of hope remained for his side and leaving Swiss striker Seferovic noticeably frustrated. The Eintracht Frankfurt man found the target four times, but lacked the clinical edge to beat Berisha.
On another day, Albania may even have salvaged a point. Subsititute Shkelzen Gashi found himself one on one with Berisha’s opposite number in the 87th minute with all the time in the world, but the Swiss custodian made himself big to complete the most telling save of the match, preserving Switzerland’s lead.
There was plenty to thank the goalkeeper for as the Swiss clung onto their lead against their 10-man opposition.
Group A begins according to script
The opening round of Group A matches has come to a close, with the group’s two more fancied sides taking home all three points on matchday one. France’s win over Romania and Switzerland’s win over Albania puts them in pole position to claim first and second in the group, setting up a potential decider on the final matchday in Lille.
On the same matchday, Albania and Romania face off in Lyon, where there could be a prize still to play for as sides hope for a ‘lucky loser’ berth in the round of 16.
What are your thoughts? Let us know by dropping a comment below via our Facebook comment box. Make sure you follow us on Twitter @Outside90 and like us on Facebook.
