Switzerland held to 2-2 draw with Latvia
Switzerland are still on course for the World Cup in South Africa next year after a hard-fought 2-2 draw with Latvia in their Group 2 qualifier on Wednesday night.
The draw in the Latvian capital, Riga, means the Swiss retain their lead in the six-team group.
The tie keeps Switzerland top of Group 2 with 17 points from eight games, Greece and Latvia each trail with 14 and Israel have 12. Only one team goes through automatically.
In the same group Israel pounded Luxembourg 7-0 on Wednesday, keeping their hopes for an outside chance still alive. Greece could only manage a 1-1 draw with Moldova.
Swiss captain Alex Frei was instrumental in his side’s first-half lead and helped rescue his team in the game’s dying minutes.
In the 43rd minute, Tranquillo Barnetta powered towards the Latvian goal. Skipping over goalkeeper Andrejs Vanins, he crossed easily to Frei, who headed the ball into an empty net.
Coach Ottmar Hitzfeld’s team finished the first half with a 1-0 lead and in command.
That changed in the 62nd minute when Latvian midfielder Aleksandrs Cauna equalised with a shot from 20 metres out, which flew past the outstretched hands of the diving Swiss keeper Diego Benaglio.
“Oh my God, oh my God,” wailed the commentator on Switzerland’s German-language television.
Close
Before it got better for the Swiss, it got worse. Latvian captain Vitalijs Astafjevs took advantage when the Swiss defence was caught off its guard.
His 75th-minute goal knocked the wind out of the Swiss sails, prompting the commentator to proclaim: “No no no! This can’t be true.”
With ten minutes to go Frei took a corner kick and 1.90-metre Bayer Leverkusen striker Eren Derdiyok outjumped the Latvian defence to head the ball past keeper Andris Vanins.
“It was a difficult match for us. We’re happy with the draw,” said Hitzfeld. “Latvia scored two good goals and put us in some difficulties.”
The game, played in front of 9,000 fans in Riga, the Latvian capital, follows a 2-0 victory over Greece on September 5.
swissinfo.ch and agencies
Switzerland: Benaglio, Lichtsteiner, von Bergen, Grichting, Spycher,
Padalino (substituted in the 76th minute for Yakin), Fernandes (79 Derdiyok), Huggel, Barnetta (76 Vonlanthen) Frei, Nkufo
Latvia: Vanins, Klava, Ivanovs, Gorkss, Kacanovs; Cauna (89 Zirnis), Kolesnicenko (86 Rafalskis), Astafjevs, Rubins, Karlsons
(85 Grebis), Verpakovskis
1) Switzerland 8 games played, (15:8), 17 points
2 Greece 8 (13:7), 14
3) Latvia 8 (13:8), 14
4) Israel 8 (17:9), 12
5) Luxembourg 8 (3:20), 5
6) Moldova 8 (3:12), 3
Next matches:
Saturday, October 10
Luxembourg-Switzerland
Israel-Moldova
Greece-Latvia
Wednesday, October 14
Switzerland-Israel
Greece-Luxembourg
Latvia-Moldova
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