Euro 2016 preview and odds: Albania vs Switzerland

Published on: 11/06/2016

Euro 2016 preview and odds: Albania vs Switzerland

Stade Bollaert-Delelis, Lens Agglo - June 11, 2016

Group stage - Group A

The first of three games on day two of the 2016 European Championships will see tournament debutants Albania take on Group A rivals Switzerland in Lens

Major tournament debut for Albania

Albania will start their first ever European Championship campaign against a team that they have never beaten in six previous meetings. Switzerland have won five of those games with the other ending in a draw. Their most recent clash - in a 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying match - resulted in a 2-0 victory to the Swiss.

Albanias one and only draw against the Swiss came on home soil during the EURO 2004 qualifying campaign. On that occasion, they came from a goal behind to secure a 1-1 draw under the guidance of Italian coach Giuseppe Dossena.

The match could see brothers Taulant and Granit Xhaka face each other on opposing sides. Both players were born in Basel to Kosovar-Albanian parents and represented Switzerland at youth level, before Taulant chose to represent Albania at senior national level. Several of the Albanian players ply their trade in Switzerland and will be familiar with their opponents, making this an intriguing clash.

Form (all competitions):

Albania: LWWLDWLLDW

Switzerland: WLLLWLWWLW

Betting predictions

Albania have never featured at a major tournament so it will be interesting to see how they fare. Their historic record against Switzerland does not bode well but this is perhaps the strongest team they have ever assembled. Thye are string defensively and could cause an upset by snatching a draw.

You can back the draw at 11/5 with Bet365.

By Neil Morris

Published on: 11/06/2016

Any odds displayed within this preview were correct at the time of publishing (11/06/2016 13:12:08) but are subject to change.