Switzerland have acknowledged the challenge of facing defending champions Argentina and Lionel Messi in the FIFA World Cup 2026 quarter-final but believe they have found weaknesses that could help them cause an upset when the teams meet on Saturday, according to Reuters.
Argentina reached the last eight after a dramatic 3-2 comeback victory over Egypt in the Round of 16, while Switzerland advanced to the World Cup quarter-finals for the first time since 1954 by defeating Colombia in a penalty shootout.
Swiss midfielder Denis Zakaria described Argentina as the best team in the world but expressed confidence in Switzerland’s ability to compete with Lionel Scaloni’s side. “It will be up to us to produce a very big performance if we want to beat them,” Zakaria told reporters, as per Reuters. “Obviously, it’s always difficult to stop a player like that, but I think we have the quality and we have the players to do it,” he added.
Messi enters the quarter-final in exceptional form, having scored eight goals in the tournament to sit level with France captain Kylian Mbappe at the top of the Golden Boot standings. He also inspired Argentina’s remarkable fightback against Egypt, scoring after missing an earlier penalty before Enzo Fernandez scored the winner.
Despite Messi’s brilliance, Zakaria insisted Switzerland would not focus solely on the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner. “We know that Messi is the best or one of the best players in the world, but in the end, Argentina are not only Messi. Other players are good, and we know that we don’t have to be only focused on Messi,” he said.
Forward Zeki Amdouni echoed that sentiment, saying Switzerland had identified areas to exploit against the reigning world champions. “We’ve studied them, and we’ll continue to do so today. I think there is space, and if we’re here today, it’s because we can hurt them too,” Amdouni said.
The Swiss forward dismissed suggestions that his teammates were overawed by Messi after former Germany goalkeeper Jens Lehmann claimed Swiss players seemed more interested in obtaining the Argentine’s shirt than defeating him. “Messi is a great player — the greatest. When you’re a child, everyone has idols. But playing against them is different,” Amdouni said. “We’ll give everything on the field and do our best to beat Argentina,” he added.
Argentina, unbeaten in 11 consecutive World Cup matches since their opening defeat to Saudi Arabia in 2022, are aiming to retain the title. Scaloni’s side has won 12 straight matches in all competitions and seeks to reach a second successive World Cup semi-final.
Switzerland have enjoyed a disciplined campaign under Murat Yakin. After topping Group B, they eliminated Algeria before defeating Colombia on penalties, with goalkeeper Gregor Kobel emerging as the shootout hero.
History favours Argentina, who have won all seven previous meetings with Switzerland, including matches at the 1966 and 2014 FIFA World Cups.
The winner of Saturday’s match in Kansas City will advance to the semi-finals, where they will face either England or Norway.