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Switzerland Euro 2008 Squad

When a national team is being mocked in adverts, it would be safe to assume that confidence is not very high heading into a major tournament. So co-hosts Switzerland’s hopes going into Euro 2008 might be best summed up in a poster from a Swiss rail company which says: “At least the Swiss are best at something” as a train speeds past a footballer.

‘Kobi’ Kuhn, who has already announced he will step down after the tournament, has built a solid side but it looks lacking in any real flair or experience. His belief in blooding young players does him credit, and two of those — Tranquillo Barnetta and Eren Derdiyok — could surprise the defenders from the Czech Republic, Portugal and Turkey, all of whom Switzerland will face in Group A.

Little is expected from this side because they struggle to score goals, but the Turkey game is likely to have some extra spice as the pair clash for the first time since the Swiss won a play-off to qualify for the 2006 World Cup, with the second-leg in Turkey ending in violence.

Switzerland have tasted little success on the international stage and, although they have reached the quarterfinals of the World Cup on three occasions, the last time they managed it was in 1954. Indeed, the Swiss did not qualify for a major tournament for 28 years following their first round exit at the 1966 World Cup, so reaching three successive Finals — even if they qualified for this tournament by virtue of being hosts — is to be celebrated.

The Swiss performed better than expected in the 2006 World Cup, their solid defence ensuring that a moment of magic or, more often, a well-rehearsed set piece, was enough to see them through to the second round. A lack of creativity could well be their undoing in this tournament, however.

A credible pre-tournament friendly defeat to England at Wembley raised expectations slightly, but a crushing 4- 0 home loss to Germany has seen predictions revised. Victory over Turkey is eminently possible, but it will be a major achievement if Kuhn’s men can relegate either the Czech Republic or Portugal into third place in the group.

Switzerland Euro 2008 Squad

Head coach: Köbi Kuhn

No. Pos. Player DoB (Age) Caps Goals Club 1 GK Diego Benaglio 8 September 1983 (24) 8 0 Wolfsburg 2 DF Johan Djourou 21 January 1987 (21) 11 0 Arsenal 3 DF Ludovic Magnin 20 April 1979 (29) 45 3 Stuttgart 4 DF Philippe Senderos 14 February 1985 (23) 23 3 Arsenal 5 DF Stephan Lichtsteiner 16 January 1984 (24) 5 0 Lille 6 MF Benjamin Huggel 7 July 1977 (30) 22 0 FC Basel 7 MF Ricardo Cabanas 29 April 1979 (29) 47 4 Grasshoppers 8 MF Gökhan Ä°nler 27 June 1984 (23) 13 1 Udinese 9 FW Alexander Frei 15 July 1979 (28) 56 32 Borussia Dortmund 10 MF Hakan Yakın 22 February 1977 (31) 61 15 Young Boys 11 FW Marco Streller 26 June 1981 (26) 25 11 FC Basel 12 FW Eren Derdiyok 12 June 1988 (19) 1 1 FC Basel 13 DF Stéphane Grichting 29 March 1979 (29) 12 0 Auxerre 14 MF Daniel Gygax 28 August 1981 (26) 30 5 Metz 15 MF Gelson Fernandes 2 September 1986 (21) 4 0 Manchester City 16 MF Tranquillo Barnetta 22 May 1985 (23) 30 6 Bayer Leverkusen 17 DF Christoph Spycher 30 March 1978 (30) 33 0 Eintracht Frankfurt 18 GK Pascal Zuberbühler 8 January 1971 (37) 50 0 Neuchâtel Xamax 19 MF Valon Behrami 19 April 1985 (23) 12 1 Lazio 20 DF Patrick Müller 31 December 1976 (31) 76 3 Lyon 21 GK Eldin Jakupović 2 October 1984 (23) 0 0 Grasshoppers 22 FW Johan Vonlanthen 1 February 1986 (22) 26 5 Red Bull Salzburg 23 DF Philipp Degen 25 February 1983 (25) 26 0 Borussia Dortmund

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Topics: European Championships, Switzerland