Sports Mole previews Tuesday’s friendly clash between Switzerland and Estonia, including predictions, team news and possible line-ups.
Swiss will play the first of its two preparation matches before Euro 2024 on Tuesday evening, with Estonia their opponents at the Swissporarena in Lucerne.
The home team is preparing for its opening European Championship match against Hungary on June 15, while Estonia is preparing to participate in the Baltic Cup, the semi-final of which will take place on June 8.
Match Preview
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Switzerland reached the quarter-finals of Euro 2020, which proved to be their best-ever performance at a European Championship, and the national team will once again try to make a good impression at the Euro 2024.
Team A have reached the knockout stages of the 2022 World Cup and will be keen to secure a top-two place in their Euro 2024 group, which also includes Hungary, Scotland and Germany.
Murat YakineThe Irish team will enter the competition on the back of a 1-0 victory over the Republic of Ireland in their last friendly at the end of March, and they have lost just one of their last 12 matches in all competitions. .
Switzerland will face Austria in their final warm-up match on June 8 before facing Hungary in their opening European Championship match on June 15.
The A team have won each of their previous four international matches against Estonia, including a 1-0 victory when the two teams last met in Euro 2016 qualifying.
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Estonia have never qualified for the final of a European Championship and have failed to win a single match in their last two qualifying campaigns for the tournament.
Thomas HaberliThe team is instead preparing to participate in the Baltic Cup, with the Faroe Islands their opponents in the semi-final of the competition on June 8 before a possible final against Latvia or Lithuania on June 11.
Estonia, who have not won since January 2023, will then return to competition in September against Slovakia in the UEFA Nations League.
The Blueshirts will come into this game on the back of five straight losses, with their last game on March 26 ending in a 2-1 loss to Finland.
Estonia conceded five in their last competitive match against Poland on March 21, and they have scored 14 goals in their previous four international matches against Switzerland.
Friendly form of Switzerland:
Swiss form (all competitions):
Friendly form of Estonia:
Estonia form (all competitions):
Team News
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It is unlikely that Switzerland will be able to appeal Gregor Kobelwho was in goal for Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League final on Saturday night, so Yann Sommer is likely to start between the sticks.
Fabien Schar And Manuel Akanji are notable inclusions at the back, while a talented midfield includes players like Xhaka Granite, Remo Freuler And Xherdan Shaqiri.
Breel Embolo has scored 13 times for Switzerland and should feature in the bottom third of the pack, while Burnley Zeki Amdouni could also be given an offensive role on Tuesday.
As for Estonia, Henri Anier has scored an impressive 22 goals for his national team, and the 33-year-old is expected to feature in the bottom third of the pack.
There could be two players from the League of Ireland Premier Division in the starting squad, with Shamrock Rovers Markus Poom and the gypsies Martin Miller push to be in the XI.
The Roma midfielder, 20 years old Martin Vetkal should also feature from the first whistle, while there could be a 158th cap for the experienced Konstain Vassiljev.
Switzerland possible starting lineup:
Sommer; Schar, Elvedi, Akanji; Ndoye, Freuler, Xhaka, Widmer; Shaqiri, Embolo, Amdouni
Possible starting lineup in Estonia:
Eh; Kuusk, Pikk, Mets, Peetson; Vassiljev, Vetkal, Poom, Miller; Anier, Tamm
We say: Switzerland 2-0 Estonia
Switzerland are the heavy favorites to triumph on Tuesday night, and we expect the home team to take the win, but Estonia are capable of making it a tricky affair, which Switzerland will want as part of their preparation for the European Championship.
For data analysis of most likely outcomes, scores and more for this match, please click here.
