MANAUS, Brazil (AP) – With a win and loss so far at the World Cup, some things clearly worked for Switzerland and some things clearly didn’t.
Regardless, the game plan will remain the same when the Swiss face Honduras today in the hot and humid Amazon rainforest with a spot in the second round still possible.
“I’m not going to change my game tactics because of the weather or climate,” Switzerland coach Ottmar Hitzfeld said yesterday. “But I cannot refer to my strategies for tomorrow [today].”
The match, the fourth and last of the World Cup to be played at the Arena da Amazonia in Manaus, two hours earlier than the previous three matches. With the sun still shining down on part of the field at that time, it is likely that the Hondurans will have the advantage because they come from a country with a similar climate.
That, however, doesn’t seem to be a worry for the Swiss.
“We will adapt,” Switzerland defender Stephan Lichtsteiner said. “We’re very well prepared.”
The Swiss opened the World Cup with a 2-1 victory over Ecuador, but they were routed 5-2 by France in the second match, leaving them in third place in the group. A draw with Honduras today combined with a France win over Ecuador will be enough to get Switzerland through to the next stage.
“We want to go onto the pitch to win. We are not only playing defence,” Hitzfeld said. “We don’t want to play for a draw. That’s not our mind set, definitely.”
But after the drubbing against France, Lichtsteiner said there are things that he and his teammates need to do better.
“We had good moments against France. We made some mistakes and this is what we have to work on,” the Juventus defender said. “We allowed France to beat us. We have to play offensively but also caring for our defence.”
If Switzerland fail to advance, it will likely be the end of Hitzfeld’s career.
The 65-year-old German, a two-time Champions League winner as a coach who has been with Switzerland for six years, has said he would retire after this World Cup.
But yesterday, one day away from what could be his last match, he said he didn’t even want to think about it being the end of the line.
