Head-to-head history
History is undoubtedly on England’s side when it comes to this matchup. The Three Lions have only lost once in their last 24 meetings with Switzerland. Since 1981, England is also unbeaten in their previous 13 games against the Swiss, winning nine and drawing four times. The English have five straight wins to their name vs Switzerland.
Can England move on?
With arguably the most talented squad at Euro 2024, expectations were sky-high for England coming into Germany. While they still are, Gareth Southgate’s men haven’t exactly looked convincing. Despite finishing at the top of their group, the Three Lions had one win and two draws, scoring a mere two goals. They beat Serbia but settled for stalemates against Denmark and Slovenia.
The Round of 16 was nearly a repeat of the Iceland defeat in 2016. The Slovenians went up by a goal in the 25th minute and kept England at bay until the final minutes of injury time in the second period where Jude Bellingham banged in a beautiful bicycle kick to force an extra 30 minutes. Southgate’s group rode the wave and quickly took the lead thanks to Harry Kane. They never looked back.
Sure, progressing is great, but England must be a mile better, especially against Switzerland. They’re a confident side right now after eliminating the Italians. It will be interesting to see what Southgate’s selections are for the starting XI on Saturday, with youngsters Kobbie Mainoo and Cole Palmer eager for more minutes. The Three Lions are a slight favorite with +120 odds at Sports Interaction.
Switzerland looking for the upset
As you can see above, Switzerland’s track record against England is absolutely terrible. That being said, it won’t scare them the least. Two draws and a victory saw them through to the Round of 16 where they absolutely ran riot on Italy. While the Swiss only controlled 49% of the possession, Murat Yakin’s squad beat the Azzurri to every single ball and just frankly outplayed the Euro 2020 winners.
Midfielder Remo Freuler netted the first with a wonderful finish before Ruben Vargas scored one of the goals of the tournament. He was also named the MOTM after assisting Frueler’s strike. Switzerland put away two of their four shots on target. It was a very impressive performance from the 19th-ranked team in the world.
Past results are also a reason for optimism for the Swiss. They’re unbeaten in the last eight matches and have just one loss in their previous 18 appearances since the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Switzerland has a strong backline and more than enough attacking options to possibly pull off the upset here, which is why their odds aren’t far behind England’s at soccer betting sites for this quarterfinal encounter.
