A topsy-turvy Group E could be thrown into further disorder when Serbia and Switzerland clash on Friday in a contest that could put one team on the brink of advancing to the knockout round.
A group that was supposed to see mighty Brazil at the top instead has Serbia, the lowest-ranked in the pack, looking down at everyone after a 1-0 win over Costa Rica in its opener while the South Americans and World No. 6 Switzerland battled to a 1-1 draw.
The stakes, however, get higher in game two with Serbia able to put something of a stranglehold on a knockout spot with a second consecutive victory while the Swiss can add to its dark horse status by following up with another positive result.
Delivering a suitable encore, however, has at times eluded Switzerland who eight years ago in South Africa beat eventual champions Spain in its World Cup opener but failed to advance out of the group stage.
“I hope that people will take notice of us and take us seriously, sometimes there's a lack of recognition and that's a pity because we played very well,” said Switzerland coach Vladimir Petkovic.
June 19-24, 2018 -- The FIFA World Cup takes place in Russia, with 32 teams competing to be crowned World Champions. Matchday two fixtures in the group stage take place over the next five days, beginning with Russia versus Egypt, and finishing with Group H match-ups between Japan and Poland, and Senegal against Colombia. Graphics, one for each match, show head-to-head and tournament records for the second group stage matches at FIFA World Cup 2018.
The Swiss, as usual, are well organised and physical but will not intimidate the Serbs, who showed against Costa Rica that they too embrace the tough going.
That could mean plenty of cards being flashed by the referee in a rough and tumble affair at Kaliningrad Stadium.
While the Serbs have an attacking reputation, both teams scored just once in the opening matches, both from set pieces.
“We know everything about Switzerland now we are going to watch for some details (from) when they played Brazil to make sure we have not missed any details,” said Serbia coach Mladen Krstajic.
