Murat Yakin set Switzerland up in a 4-2-3-1 designed to absorb pressure and strike on the break. The strategy was a direct response to the opponent — and to the man in the opposing dugout.
Vladimir Petkovic, Algeria’s coach, had managed Switzerland for seven years. He knew Granit Xhaka’s passing patterns. He knew Manuel Akanji’s defensive tendencies. He knew Embolo’s movement. He had, in theory, the complete tactical dossier on his former team.
Yakin, who had once studied under Petkovic, anticipated this. He adjusted his formation to narrow the wide spaces Petkovic’s Algeria would try to exploit. He thickened the midfield to disrupt Algeria’s build-up. And he trusted his young players to do what the old guard could not.
The 10th Minute: Manzambi + Embolo
The breakthrough came from a counter-attack — Switzerland’s most dangerous weapon. A turnover in midfield, a quick transition, and the ball was with Johan Manzambi on the left flank.
Manzambi, 20 years old, drove past two defenders and reached the byline. His low cross found Embolo, who had timed his run perfectly. A simple left-footed finish. 1-0.
This was Manzambi’s fourth goal involvement of the tournament — three goals and two assists. He became only the third player aged 21 or under to be directly involved in at least four goals at a single World Cup this century, joining Thomas Muller (2010) and Kylian Mbappe (2018). His market value has reportedly jumped from €8 million to €50 million.
Embolo, meanwhile, became the first Swiss player to score in two different World Cups. He has now contributed to a goal in four consecutive World Cup matches — a Swiss record since detailed statistics began in 1966.
The 46th Minute: Ndoye’s Dagger
If the first goal was a counter-attacking masterpiece, the second was a gift — and Switzerland took it ruthlessly. Seconds after the second-half kickoff, Algeria’s defence failed to clear a routine ball. Dan Ndoye collected it at the edge of the box and unleashed a shot that flew into the far corner. 2-0.
Game over. Switzerland could now retreat into their comfort zone: Xhaka controlling the tempo, Akanji marshalling the defence, and the entire team executing the low-block counter-attack that has become their trademark.
The Petkovic Paradox
Petkovic’s pre-match advantage — intimate knowledge of his former team — turned out to be his undoing. He prepared for the Switzerland he knew. But the Switzerland he faced had evolved.
The key variable was Manzambi. During Petkovic’s tenure, Manzambi was a youth-team prospect, not a senior international. He was not in Petkovic’s tactical database. And he was the player who destroyed Algeria’s game plan with one run and one cross.
Algeria dominated possession — 56% to Switzerland’s 44%. They had more passes, more attacking moves, more territorial advantage. But they managed only two shots on target. Switzerland had five, and scored from two of them.
Riyad Mahrez, Algeria’s talisman, was marked out of the game. Petkovic substituted him in the 72nd minute — a white flag from a coach who had run out of ideas.
The 81st Minute: The Miss Heard Around the World
No match report would be complete without mentioning the 81st minute. Denis Zakaria delivered a perfect cross to the far post. Algeria’s goalkeeper and both centre-backs had been drawn to Embolo at the near post. The goal was gaping. Fabian Rieder, on as a substitute, was three metres from the goal line. He shot. He missed.
The ball sailed wide. The stadium gasped. Social media exploded. “My grandmother could have scored that” became the meme of the day.
Fortunately for Rieder, Switzerland were already 2-0 up. The miss became a footnote rather than a tragedy — a moment of comedy in an otherwise ruthlessly professional performance.
What Comes Next
Switzerland await the winner of Colombia vs Ghana in the Round of 16. For the first time in 88 years, they enter a World Cup knockout match not as the team trying to break a curse, but as the team that has already broken it.
Manzambi is 20. Ndoye is 23. Embolo is 29. This is not the Switzerland of old — the team that always found a way to lose when it mattered most. This is a new Switzerland: young, fast, efficient, and dangerous.
They are not favourites to win the World Cup. But after 88 years of waiting, they have earned the right to dream.
