The break came against Romania: why the national team no longer shines

A disastrous double substitution

The start of qualifying is perfect. The national team celebrated a resounding victory against Belarus in the ghost match in Novi Sad, Serbia, and there was a 3-0 gala victory against Israel in Geneva. And against Romania in Lucerne she also put in a dominant performance for 70 minutes – until a goal conceded in the 89th minute changed everything. Fabian Schär and Uran Bislimi are on the sidelines ready to play when the goal is scored. Yakin thinks about it for five seconds before deciding to use them despite conceding a goal and help Bislimi make his national team debut. Two minutes later the score was 2-2. It leads to breakage; Things have been going downhill since then.

Great at the club, flop with the national team

They are regular players at Manchester City and Inter Milan, thinkers and leaders at Bayer Leverkusen or crowd favorites at Newcastle, midfielders at Monaco or captains at Torino. Manuel Akanji, Yann Sommer, Granit Xhaka, Fabian Schär, Denis Zakaria and Ricardo Rodriguez. They have formed the framework of the national team for years and have established themselves abroad. But the difference between their club and national team performances this fall is night and day.

Missing hair clippers

Breel Embolo, the best striker since the start of qualifying, is injured. And Haris Seferovic, a striker for years, is being picked out step by step by Yakin. But that doesn’t bother anyone at first – because Zeki Amdouni (22) is the shooting star in the Nati sky. Five goals in the first four international matches is a dream figure. But since the move to Burnley, not much has happened to Romand. Noah Okafor is also not getting up to speed, Cedric Itten is sometimes there, sometimes not. And Haris Tabakovic (29), an old-school nine, is not even an issue for the national coach. The Hertha striker now plays for Bosnia-Herzegovina.

Refusal to appoint right-backs

Even at the World Cup in Qatar, the coach’s team caused heads to shake because he had no real backup for Silvan Widmer. If he drops out before the round of 16, Edimilson Fernandes will have to play. It ends in a 1:6 debacle against Portugal. Now Widmer is recovering and no longer there. Yet, apart from Fernandes, Yakin does not offer anyone as a right-back. Just why? The choices are: YBler Lewin Blum, who is good enough to play against Manchester City and Leipzig, but apparently not against Israel and Kosovo. Or Kevin Mbabu, who recently played twice for Augsburg. The result is known: Fernandes ensures the 1-1 draw against Israel and is thrown off the field. Eray Cömert therefore has to play against the Kosovan central defender, who remains ineffective offensively. Who is surprised?

Lack of self-criticism

“We are showing great and dominant football,” says Murat Yakin. Time and time again: after the 3-3 draw against Belarus, after the 1-1 draw against Israel, after the 1-1 draw against Kosovo. The fact is: the performance curve points downwards. Israel leaves its best players on the bench for an hour, Kosovo misses its top quartet Muriqi, Rashica, Rrahmani and Zhegrova. Yet the national team does not win. The coach points out high ball possession and many scoring opportunities. He shows a lack of understanding for the criticism in the media; according to his statements, everything – apart from the results – is fine. It is the transfiguration of reality. Captain Xhaka becomes clearer: “The worm is in there.”

Goodbye team spirit

It is the basis of all Nati’s successes: team spirit. The spirit of the generation of the U17 World Champions in 2009 and the U21 European Championship finalists in 2011 is also transferred to the senior national team. This develops into a close-knit unit in which players can recharge their batteries during crises in daily club life. As a team, the national team is pushing boundaries and reaching the knockout stages in a final round five times in a row, something only France has achieved. And the big coup will be achieved against France, the world champion, at the European Championship in the summer of 2021. The harsh public criticism after the 3-0 defeat against Italy brought the team together. Led by leader Xhaka, they celebrate the greatest success of modern times. More than two years later, this team spirit is hardly noticeable anymore.