Five things we learnt from Hungary 1-3 Switzerland

Köln’s RheinEnergieStadion played host to the second match of Group A on Saturday afternoon, as Switzerland cruised to a routine win over Hungary.

Ludogorets’ Kwadwo Duah opened the scoring early, pouncing onto Michel Aebischer’s through ball and slotting home coolly to open Switzerland’s EURO2024 account. The lead was doubled just before half time, as Aebischer starred again, curling home from outside the box to highlight the well-rounded nature of this Switzerland team.

Hungary improved notably in the second half following a formation change, scoring after a brief attacking spell with just over 20 minutes remaining, but failed to offer much of a challenge and conceded late to Breel Embolo, securing a 1-3 victory for the Swiss contingent.

Tipped by many to make an against-the-odds run in the tournament, this was a disappointing first showing from Hungary, whose star man Dominik Szoboszlai had a quiet day, left in the shadow of Bayer Leverkusen’s Granit Xhaka.

Here are the five things we learnt from the second match of the tournament.

Switzerland are close to a complete package

With a starting eleven featuring a range of top-flight talent, Switzerland looked comfortable and balanced from the off. This is due in no small part to the midfield core of Granit Xhaka and Remo Freuler, whose calm presence on the ball and no-nonsense defending off it helped to establish the side’s first half dominance.

The front three of Ruben Vargas, Duah, and Dan Ndoye looked constantly dangerous, with piercing runs in behind and tight passing allowing Switzerland to create constant chances and sustain an attacking threat throughout the match. Add Manuel Akanji and Fabian Schär to the equation and you are left with a team with very few weaknesses. Switzerland will likely be Germany’s only serious challenger in Group A.

Hungary will not be the dark horses so many expected

As with Türkiye in 2020, Hungary look to be in danger of becoming of falling victim to the curse of the ‘dark horse’ pick. Countless fans and pundits have called on Hungary to be EURO2024’s surprise package, though a disjointed opening performance already seems to have dashed this trend.

Hungary were roundly outplayed in the first 45 minutes of their summer campaign, and, despite improving dramatically after a halftime tactical rejig, struggled to create any sustained threat.

With just seven places between Hungary and Switzerland in FIFA world rankings, this match was an effective litmus test for the Trikolor’s tournament prospects, and the results do not make for very encouraging reading.

Hungary’s tactical flexibility is a positive, but lack of cutting edge will come back to bite

The difference between Hungary’s first and second half performances was stark and was thanks in part to the halftime decision to switch from a back three to a back four, as Adam Lang made way for Bendeguz Bolla.

Where Szoboszlai endured an anonymous first half, he came back into the game in the second period, managing the assist for Vargas’ 66^th minute goal. Ultimately, though, the Liverpool star struggled to influence the game – an issue which Marco Rossi will need to address if his side is to progress any further in the tournament.

Despite the encouraging improvement, though, Hungary struggled to capitalise and obtain a consequential foothold in the match, ultimately conceding again late on. There are plenty of issues to address if Hungary are to progress to the knockout rounds.

Murat Yakin’s job is safe for a little longer

A manager under considerable scrutiny coming into the tournament, Yakin’s Switzerland team were set up impeccably for their maiden match, getting off to an early lead and maintaining control of the match throughout despite Hungary’s second half surge.

The team came under pressure after conceding with 24 minutes left on the clock, but responded maturely and scored late through Breel Embolo to secure a first victory of the summer’s campaign.

Yakin’s tactical setup played to the strengths of Xhaka and Akanji, who controlled the game for the majority of the first half, and his substitutions had the desired effect.

All in, this was a comfortable and professional performance from the Rossocrociati, and Yakin will be sufficiently encouraged ahead of matches with Scotland and Germany.

Duah impresses in second ever international appearance

Despite making his international debut less than two weeks ago, Kwado Duah looked right at home at centre forward, scoring his first senior Switzerland goal after 12 minutes. He linked up well with the rest of the front three and looked dangerous until he was hooked after 68 minutes.

At 27 years of age, it is hard to call Duah a breakout star, though he looks set to be one of the surprise packages of the tournament.