UEFA Nations League: Germany Gunning for Glory over Struggling Swiss

Germany vs Switzerland

Germany finally got their first UEFA Nations League win in seven tries after edging out Ukraine 2-1 in Kiev. The win puts the Germans in second place in Group A4 with five points, right behind leaders Spain.

Jogi Low’s men will be eager to make it two wins out of two when they go back home to host Switzerland, who are struggling this time around after reaching the semi-finals of the first Nations League.

However, the Swiss defied the UEFA Nations League 2020 betting odds by getting a draw against Germany and will be eager to get their Nations League campaign back on track at Die Mannschaft’s expense.

Talking Points

Germany getting comfortable with new formation

After four draws and two defeats in their first six Nations League matches, Germany finally got their first victory of the new tournament with a 2-1 away win over Ukraine.

Matthias Ginter and Leon Goretzka got the goals for the Germans, who have stuck to the 3-4-3 formation they’ve used during this entire Nations League campaign.

This time, it was Serge Gnabry who played as the lone striker with Julian Draxler and Goretzka offering support. Despite this unusual collection of personnel, the Germans still looked in control for the entire match as they dominated 73 per cent of possession and had 17 total shots (12 on target) to Ukraine’s nine.

However, Low still wasn’t completely impressed with his side’s performance and thought they let up after going 2-0 up. But despite saying his team got ‘tired’ after building their lead, Low also said he is unlikely to make any changes to his starting line-up against Switzerland.

Kai Havertz eyes to lead Germany in beating Switzerland to claim their second UEFA Nations League — Germany’s Kai Havertz in action against Turkey’s Merih Demiral during their international friendly match

That means the Chelsea duo of Timo Werner and Kai Havertz, who both came on late as substitutes against Ukraine, will likely start on the bench once again. Havertz started Germany’s recent friendly against Turkey and set up two goals in their 3-3 draw.

While Low was disappointed they conceded a penalty, he was generally pleased with how his defence limited Ukraine many scoring chances. He will now be hoping his side can finally keep a clean sheet in the Nations League for the first time since their first game against France in 2018.

Switzerland suddenly in distress

Switzerland’s first few UEFA Nations League 2020 results have been quite disappointing. They’re winless in their first three matches with two defeats and a draw as they find themselves at the bottom of their group.

They lost 1-0 to a much-changed Spain squad after Yan Sommer’s costly error presented the Spaniards with their only goal.

They didn’t play well as a whole, either. They had just 40 per cent of possession and were outshot 12-4. They only had one shot on target, which was well-saved by David de Gea.

The Swiss are suddenly finding goals hard to come by. After smashing in 14 goals in four games during the first Nations League campaign, they have just two through three games.

Top striker Haris Seferovic, who came into the international break in good form after scoring three goals in his last two games for Benfica, has found the net just twice in his last nine appearances for his country.

However, Seferovic and the Swiss did have their best performance of this Nations League campaign against held Germany as they held them to a 1-1 draw at home. They outshot the Germans 20-14 while Seferovic nearly scored as he hit the post.

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Premier League

Xherdan Shaqiri, whose availability for this international break was in serious doubt due to COVID-19, only featured as a second-half substitute against Spain, but he could potentially be handed a start against the Germans.

History

Germany have handily dominated their head-to-head matchups against Switzerland over the years. The Germans have 35 wins to the Swiss’ nine, with seven draws.

However, the Swiss are now undefeated in their last two meetings against Germany. Prior to their 1-1 draw in their first Nations League match, the Swiss shocked Germany 5-3 in a friendly back in 2012.

Betting Tip

	Germany vs Switzerland	Over 2.75 @ 1.88
	October 14, 02:45 (GMT+8)

SBOTOP odds have Germany as a -1.00 favourite on the Asian Handicap market, which seems about right. Despite Switzerland’s struggles, it will still be tough to beat them by over a goal.

Instead, turn your attention to the over under, particularly the over. Germany are clearly capable of scoring at least two goals at home, and with their recent defensive deficiencies, the Swiss are a decent threat to get a goal back.