Euro 2024: Hungary vs Switzerland tips and predictions - Swiss grossly overrated ahead of opener
- George Dempsey
- 13 June 2024
Hungary and Switzerland will meet in a Group B fixture in Cologne on Saturday (1400 BST) and we think the wrong team are favourited.
Hungary and Switzerland may feel the pressure to be quick out of the blocks more than most at this year’s European Championship, as hosts Germany await in the following matches.
A loss for the Hungarians sets up the very real scenario that the Germans and the Swiss could be home and dry after two games, but we don’t anticipate that happening.
Murat Yakin’s side beat Andorra, Belarus and Israel during qualifying. They scraped through on 17 points, two ahead of Israel, in a group punctuated by late drama.
While it’s true they suffered some misfortune, they also exposed a soft underbelly when surrendering three leads to Kosovo, one to Israel and collapsing against Romania, conceding two goals in added time.
Although they’ve struggled to get over the line as often as they should have, they’ve also been tough to beat. That’s been a theme in Yakin’s coaching career.
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Talking of teams that are tough to beat, Hungary could be a dark horse in Germany.
They’ve been conquered by four sides in their previous 30 matches but they haven’t played an easy schedule. Two wins over England were the highlight, as was a 1-0 win in Germany.
Israel, Turkey, Poland, Greece and Serbia (twice) are also among those to be conquered, while the French had to settle for a 1-1 draw at the last European Championship.
The challenge awaiting the Swiss is the quality of Hungary’s underrated midfield. Dominik Szoboszlai’s skillset is no secret, yet he’s just one cog in a well-oiled machine.
Andras Schafer had a good season for Union Berlin while Daniel Gazdag took his tally to 52 goals in 91 matches from midfield in MLS and chess piece Roland Sallai featured in eight different positions for Freiburg.
On one hand, it’s hard not to acknowledge the experience in the Swiss squad, but their defence so often betrays them, and we’re surprised to see them favoured so heavily.
We think Hungary will escape the group and they’ll most likely do so by claiming at least four points from the Swiss and Scotland.
Team news
Experienced stopper Peter Gulasci is expected to get the nod between the sticks for Hungary while RB Leipzigi's Willi Orban could anchor a three-man defence.
Talented Bournemouth full-back Milos Kerkez will patrol the left of the pitch while Szoboslai and Sallai operate in behind 20-goal-hitman Barnabas Varga.
The Swiss boast vast experience with Yann Somer, Remo Freuler, Ricardo Rodriguez, Silvan Widmer, Fabian Schar, Granit Xhaka and Xherdan Shaqiri all 31 years of age or older and likely to start.
Burnley's Zeki Amdouni was the top scorer in qualifying but Augsburg's Ruben Vargas is an equally dynamic threat.
Key stats
- Hungary have lost once in 16 matches in all competitions
- Hungary have lost to four teams in their previous 30 matches
- Switzerland have failed to win 13 of 19 away from Swiss soil
- Switzerland have won three of 18 matches at the European Championships
