Group winners: Kobel celebrates with Switzerland after Canada win | OneFootball

The Switzerland adventure at the World Cup is not over yet for Switzerland and Gregor Kobel (28). In their final group match against co-hosts Canada, the Swiss came out on top 2-1.

After the embarrassing 1-1 draw against Qatar in the opener, head coach Murat Yakin’s (51) team got back on track. The emphatic 4-1 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina was followed on Wednesday (24 June) by the victory over the Canadians. With seven points, Switzerland secured first place in Group B.

The Nati will now fight on Friday (3 July, 5 a.m. CEST) against a third-placed team for a place in the round of 16. As in the group-stage finale, the venue will be BC Place Stadium in Vancouver.

As in the previous two World Cup matches, Kobel again played the full 90 minutes against Canada. That took the BVB goalkeeper’s tally to 24 international appearances.

Boos for Kobel

Although the Dortmund man had to pick the ball out of the net once after Promise David scored to make it 2-1, he otherwise delivered a composed performance. Kobel looked very assured when dealing with high balls, especially in the closing stages. Over the full 90 minutes, however, Switzerland’s number one was rarely seriously tested thanks to his team’s focused defensive display. Aside from David’s well-worked goal, the 28-year-old dealt confidently with every shot on his goal. In stoppage time, the Dortmund keeper made three strong saves in quick succession.

Photo: Getty Images

For unknown reasons, Kobel does not seem to enjoy much sympathy from the Canadian crowd. From the very first minute, the goalkeeper was met with loud boos every time he touched the ball. But he appeared completely unfazed by the disapproval and stayed calm.

That is unlikely to be any different on Friday, when Switzerland battle an as-yet unknown opponent for a place in the round of 16.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.