Germany left it late in Frankfurt, as Niclas Füllkrug rose highest in injury time and headed the host nation into the knockouts as group leaders.
It was Murat Yakin’s Switzerland, however, who stole the show, leading for the majority of the game and causing Germany problems in all areas of the pitch. A nervy start to proceedings saw Robert Andrich’s opener ruled out for a foul in the build up, before Dan Ndoye capped off a gorgeous Switzerland attack to give the underdogs the lead inside 30 minutes.
Heroic defending and astute substitutions allowed the Swiss to hold out until well into injury time, when David Raum and Niclas Füllkrug combined to finally blemish their opponents clean sheet.
Switzerland
Yann Sommer – 5
Inter Milan’s Sommer was saved from ridicule as his blunder, in the face of a speculative Robert Andrich effort from range, was redeemed by VAR. Sommer appeared to misread the bounce of the ball as he got down low to his near post, before it clipped his hands and deflected tamely into the net. He was otherwise solid, claiming many of Germany’s threatening crosses, and having little hope of keeping out their eventual goal.
Silvan Widmer – 4
Switzerland’s harshest rating falls upon the shoulders of Widmer, who failed to help la Nati in attack, but more importantly was exploited by Germany as a defensive weak link. Widmer did little to stem the tide of attacks down his side, with Mittelstädt especially finding acres of space in which to cross dangerously in towards Havertz. Possession in these areas produced Germany’s biggest threats in the first half.
Fabian Schär – 8
Schär looked briefly at sea in the beginning of the game, failing to communicate with Widmer and allowing runs into dangerous areas on his side of the box. However, he quickly regained composure, becoming a rock in his side’s stalwart defence. Schär was especially good in stepping out to German attackers when defending, winning possession or forcing them backwards.
Manuel Akanji – 9
Akanji was absolutely imperious at the back, producing a monumental performance capped off beautifully by a sliding block to deny Kimmich from point blank range. The Manchester City man formed the beating heart of Switzerland’s defence, making crucial interventions and consistently beginning attacking moves for his team with reliable passing. Superb.
Ricardo Rodriguez – 8
Whilst not providing quite the same moments of spectacle as his defensive partner, Rodriguez was just as crucial to his team’s performance as Akanji. He demonstrated a hybrid role as the leftmost centre-back in Switzerland’s back three, tracking the runs of Germany’s front four out of possession before rotating with his teammates on the left wing to ensure there was always a wide man in space. His performance was one of discipline and hard work, demonstrating why he is so respected in this seasoned side.
Michel Aebischer – 8
Rounding off the defensive unit, Aebischer covered incredible amounts of ground to appear at the crucial moments in his own box. He was calm under pressure in possession and was one of the key players in Switzerland’s transitions.
Remo Freuler – 7
Freuler played a huge part in isolating Gundogan in the middle of the pitch, forcing Germany wide and away from their biggest goal threats. It is indicative of his work rate that he spent the majority of the game in the right hand side of his own half, but grabbed a wonderful assist from the left edge of his opponents box.
Granit Xhaka – 8
Freuler’s rating might even be higher if it wasn’t for his midfield partner putting in such a fantastic performance in similar positions. Xhaka was exactly what he needed to be for Switzerland, marking players out of the game, making spectacular sliding challenges on the edge of his box and moving the ball around well in the heart of the pitch. A true captain’s performance.
Fabian Rieder – 6
Rieder largely failed to impose himself on the game before he was substituted in the 65th minute, despite some early promise on the ball. He lacked the strength or pace of his compatriots in attack, and received little service from a lacklustre Widmer.
Dan Ndoye – 7
It was a game of moments for Ndoye, who faded in and out of the match alongside his side’s control, or lack thereof. He did have flashes of brilliance however, his speed and deft touch seeming to rattle Rüdiger, who looked shaky whenever they faced each other directly. His run and finish for the goal were those of a very capable player, and he will certainly be one to watch as Switzerland advance.
Breel Embolo – 6
Embolo demonstrated capable hold up play, but struggled to get into the areas where he could display the finishing skills that he has already shown off at this tournament. He was also replaced in the 65th minute.
Substitutes
Ruben Vargas – 7
Vargas didn’t have all that much time to impose himself onto the game, but he took a good crack at it as he precisely tucked away what could easily have been the game winner if he had received the pass just a fraction earlier. He looked good in possession in wide areas and seems to have shrugged off his tendency to take on the unrealistic shots from distance which have marred his tournament thus far.
Zeki Amdouni – 7
Amdouni came on alongside Vargas and Duah, producing a solid display of progressive ball carrying and passing, alongside an admirable defensive contribution. He played his role in the team press well, and overall made no notable errors in a promising cameo.
Kwadwo Duah – 5
Duah was given the unenviable task of reproducing Embolo’s hold up play, and ultimately failed. The balls in behind that he thrives off were never coming in a game where Switzerland didn’t control possession, and Duah was wasteful when the ball was played into his chest with his back to goal.
Germany
Manuel Neuer – 7
Neuer had little to do for the majority of the game, and had no chance at stopping the two shots that rolled past him and into the net. He made a truly fantastic stop to deny Xhaka a winner later on however, which bumps up his grade to a 7.
Joshua Kimmich – 5
Kimmich was uncharacteristically absent in important areas in the match, effectively neutralised by Aebischer and forced into hopeful crosses or passing backwards. He potentially could have reacted faster to the ball that fell to him in front of goal, and thereby avoided Akanji’s block.
Antonio Rüdiger – 5
As previously mentioned, Rüdiger seemed uncomfortable when facing down Ndoye around his box, failing to block Freuler’s cross which gave Switzerland the lead, and playing Ndoye on in the process. One might wonder whether his yellow card situation caused him some nerves, especially when Tah had already ruled himself out of the next game.
Jonathan Tah – 5
Another uninspiring defensive performance in the German back line, Tah was doing just okay at preventing the opposition building up through Embolo, until he inexplicably tried to hurdle the Swiss striker and earned himself a yellow card in the process, ruling him out of their imminent round of sixteen clash.
Maximilian Mittelstädt – 8
Mittelstädt once again proved why he has taken up the mantle of Germany’s starting left-back. Defensively sound, his real upside came in terrorising Switzerland’s right flank through precise passes and movement alongside Florian Wirtz. His crosses in towards Havertz could easily have added to his assist tally for the tournament, but were defended well.
Robert Andrich – 7
Andrich might feel aggrieved at having been denied a first goal for Germany by VAR… but not too aggrieved. The shot had no right to go in and was rightfully disallowed for a foul committed by Jamal Musiala in the build up. Andrich was reliable elsewhere however, and covered the wide areas well when his full-backs were caught high in Germany’s aggressive system.
Toni Kroos – 8
A conductor in the core of this Germany team as always, Kroos kept the side moving when Switzerland threatened to stop them dead. His dropping back in between his centre-backs allowed his side to bypass the opposition press, Kroos playing through the lines to push his side forward. It’s what we have come to expect from the imminently retiring midfielder, but he still makes it look so easy.
Jamal Musiala – 7
Whilst not quite his electric self today, Musiala still carried an air of class that few could match as he glided past defenders early on in the game. Switzerland did a good job of cutting him off from the ball after they took the lead, but Musiala always felt like one of Germany’s bright spots.
İlkay Gündoğan – 5
Gündoğan found himself virtually marked out of the match thanks to a brilliantly executed game plan from the Swiss. When he did appear to get a golden chance, he squandered it, blasting a rebound well wide of the post from the edge of the box. His low score might have more to do with the opposition countering him than a poor performance overall.
Florian Wirtz – 6
Wirtz had some brief joy down the left side early on, but couldn’t get on the ball enough in good areas and had only a small impact on proceedings.
Kai Havertz – 5
To his credit, Havertz was practically the only player who got himself in position to have multiple good chances, thanks to his good movement and strength. Unfortunately he failed to convert any of them, especially missing a series of good headed chances from corners, with the worst of which deflecting off of his shoulder and harmlessly clipping the top of the bar on its way down.
Substitutes
Nico Schlotterbeck – 6
By the time Schlotterbeck made his way onto the pitch, in exchange for Jonathan Tah, Germany had already begun to exert more control on the game. Switzerland found themselves attacking less and less, and he found little opportunity to impact the match.
David Raum – 7
Raum picked up where Mittelstädt left off, getting into good positions and crossing dangerously into the box before eventually finding the head of Niclas Füllkrug to give his side the much awaited equaliser.
Niclas Füllkrug – 7
Füllkrug was barely noticeable for the majority of his time on the pitch, which is fine because he did exactly what he was there for: guiding a header beautifully back across goal and leaving Sommer rooted to the spot in net. He has become a huge asset for this Germany team as an option off the bench.
Leroy Sané – 5
Sané maintained his trend of uninspiring showings off the bench with today’s outing. Wayward and wasteful shots combined with little creative upside to result in Sané earning the lowest score of the substitutes, disappointing for a player of his calibre.
Maximilian Beier – 6
Beier looked lively immediately after coming on for Germany, but was soon relegated to taking up a position in the box from which to try and head in, coming off worse in a battle to win an aerial duel against an immense defensive unit and his colleague Füllkrug.
You can keep following the EURO2024 action right here on FromTheSpot, with our detailed coverage continuing throughout the tournament.