Lopetegui’s Qatar miracle sinks Swiss hearts
In a very poor match, in line with much of the tournament so far, Qatar drew level at the end and punished Switzerland.
It may be the heat, or perhaps the fact that football still struggles to take off in the United States, and is unlikely to do so with this format. It may be because there are 48 teams and some feel redundant, or because the opening group matches are the quietest stage of the tournament, or even because the fastidious among us will not settle for just anything in the tournament of tournaments.
Whatever the reason, the World Cup is progressing without substance, without essence. That much was clear again in another extremely bland, dreadful match, in which Qatar performed the miracle of equalising in the 95th minute against a very modest Switzerland.
With a defensive line-up that was inappropriate against the weakest team in the group, Yakin ultimately paid for his arrogance. No flair. No flourish. Not even the joy of Manzambi in the starting XI. Nothing. His reliance on structure meant Switzerland fielded their oldest-ever World Cup side, with an average age over 30. It looked as though it should have been enough to beat Qatar, but it fell short of what is expected from the strongest team in the group.
Abunada, Lopetegui’s goalkeeper, made only one serious error in the match: a clumsy penalty in which he brought down Freuler, although there is doubt over whether there was an offside earlier in the move. Qatar’s World Cup campaign had only just begun, and their inexperience showed. Embolo took advantage of the foul to score.
It looked as though Switzerland would open their World Cup with a rout, yet they faded and were eventually frustrated by Qatar’s resistance. Only Edmilson briefly threatened in attack for Qatar, but the match remained open given the narrow scoreline.
It seemed enough for Switzerland to control the game without conceding. Ndoye did not appear. Vargas had a one-on-one but missed. San Francisco experienced another forgettable match at the World Cup. Lopetegui did not relent and stayed in the contest until he erupted in celebration with Khoukhi’s 95th-minute equaliser. Qatar’s first point in World Cup history. A miracle. A moment for the history books.
Qatar and Switzerland fans dancing together 🤝 pic.twitter.com/JeyOaMetpl
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) June 13, 2026
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- 1 Mahmoud Abunada
- 16 Boualem Khoukhi
- 14 Ahmed Homam
- 13 Ayoub Al Oui (59')
- 2 Pedro
- 4 Issa Laye
- 5 Jassem Abdulsallam (59')
- 23 Assim Madebo (78')
- 11 Akram Afif
- 8 Edmilson Junior (87')
- 15 Yusuf Abdurisag (59')
- Substitutes
- 21 Salah Zakaria
- 9 Mohammed Muntari
- 6 Abdulaziz Hatem
- 10 Hasan Al Haydos (87')SC
- 24 Tahsin Mohammed
- 22 Meshaal Aissa
- 18 Sultan Al Brake
- 20 Ahmed Fathi (59')
- 25 Al Hashmi Al Hussain
- 17 Ahmed Al Ganehi
- 26 Mohammad Al Mannai (78')
- 12 Karim Boudiaf (59')
- 3 Lucas Mendes
- 7 Ahmed Alaa Eddine (59')
- 19 Moez Ali
- 1 Gregor Kobel
- 13 Ricardo Rodríguez (88')
- 4 Elvedi
- 5 Manuel Akanji
- 6 Zakaria
- 8 Freuler (88')
- 20 Michel Aebischer (64')-
- 10 Xhaka -
- 17 Ruben Vargas (78')-
- 11 Dan Ndoye (65')-
- 7 Embolo
- Substitutes
- 14 Ardon Jasari (88')SC
- 19 Noah Okafor
- 12 Mvogo
- 26 Itten
- 22 Fabian Rieder (64')
- 3 Widmer
- 2 Miro Muheim (88')SC
- 18 Eray Cömert
- 16 Fassnacht
- 24 Aurèle Amenda
- 15 Djibril Sow
- 23 Mohamed Zeki Amdouni (78')
- 25 Luca Jaquez
- 21 Marvin Keller
- 9 Johan Manzambi (65')
Substitutions
Ahmed Fathy (59', Ayoub Al Oui), Karim Boudiaf (59', Jassem Gaber), Ahmed Alaa (59', Yusuf Abdurisag), Fabian Rieder (64', Michel Aebischer), Johan Manzambi (65', Dan Ndoye), Mohammad Al Mannai (78', Assim Madibo), Zeki Amdouni (78', Rubén Vargas), Hassan Al Haydos (87', Edmílson Junior), Miro Muheim (88', Ricardo Rodríguez), Ardon Jashari (88', Remo Freuler)
Goals
0-1, 16': Embolo, 1-1, 93': Miro Muheim
Cards
Referee: Saíd Martínez
VAR Referee: Guillermo Pacheco Larios, Erick Yair Miranda Galindo
Mahmoud Abunada (15',Yellow), Jassem Abdulsallam (22',Yellow), Zakaria (41',Yellow)
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