Frei left out of France match over spitting row
The Swiss Football Association (SFA) says it will not play striker Alex Frei against France on Monday, after television footage showed him spitting at an England player.
The SFA said it would not challenge a provisional suspension handed down by European football’s governing body, Uefa.
“The SFA has decided that on the basis of the new TV pictures it will not be possible to oppose a suspension,” the association said in a statement.
Television footage surfaced on Sunday showing Frei spitting at midfielder Steven Gerrard during Thursday’s match, which the Swiss lost 3-0.
A Uefa disciplinary commission originally dismissed the case against Frei for lack of evidence. Frei also denied any wrongdoing.
The Swiss striker said he had only sworn at Gerrard after the England player pushed him from behind.
Uefa is examining the new footage, which shows Frei brushing past Gerrard and spitting at the back of his neck.
Italian striker Francesco Totti was banned for three matches last week for spitting at a Danish player.
Headlines
The affair has overshadowed Switzerland’s final Group B match against France, which they must win if they are to qualify for the quarter-finals.
The Swiss have yet to score a goal at the European football championships and Frei’s absence is a big blow.
The tabloid “Blick” said Euro 2004 in Portugal “will go down as a dark chapter in Swiss football history unless Switzerland can pull off a miracle against France”.
Many newspapers demanded to know if Frei was acting alone or if he was told to lie by the Swiss Football Association.
The Zurich-based “Tages-Anzeiger” said Frei’s real crime was his failure to come clean.
Worst foul
The newspaper questioned whether Frei had been told to lie by the Swiss Football Association, saying this would be more serious than the original offence.
“Der Bund” said the incident amounted to a loss of face for both the striker and the Swiss Football Association.
“Alex Frei lied” was the headline in “24 Heures”, which carried a large picture of Frei defending himself at a press conference.
If Switzerland are to advance, they must beat France and hope there is a winner in the other Group B match between England and Croatia.
“It’s our last chance and every player must go into this match believing that the only attitude is to take our chance against France,” said midfielder Hakan Yakin.
The Swiss had a man sent off in both the 0-0 draw with Croatia and during their defeat against England.
“Just once, I would like our team to take the lead in a match and finally play all 90 minutes with 11 players on the pitch,” said Swiss coach, Köbi Kuhn.
swissinfo with agencies
How Group B looks after two matches:
France – 4 points
England – 3 points
Croatia – 2 points
Switzerland – 1 point
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