Switzerland made it to the FIFA World Cup quarter-finals for the first time since 1954, beating Colombia 4-3 on penalties after a goalless draw in extra time in Vancouver, Canada.
The Swiss stayed calm during the shootout, and goalkeeper Gregor Kobel was the standout player. Davinson Sánchez hit the crossbar with Colombia’s penalty, then Kobel saved Cucho Hernández’s shot. That set up Rubén Vargas to score the winning penalty and send Switzerland into the last eight.
Switzerland will now play defending champions Argentina in the quarter-finals.
“They had the crowd on their side, so it was a tough game for us,” Kobel said. “We knew there would be periods where we had to defend and stay mentally strong. We were also missing a few players, so it was a big challenge.”
This is Switzerland’s first appearance in the World Cup quarter-finals since hosting the tournament 72 years ago. It’s also the first time they’ve won two knockout matches in one World Cup. Meanwhile, fell short of reaching the quarter-finals for just the second time in their history. It was another painful penalty shootout exit after also losing to England from the spot in the Round of 16 at the 2018 World Cup.
“The dream was enormous,” Colombia midfielder Jhon Arias said. “The whole country believed in us and lived every moment with us, and that only makes the pain even greater.”
The South Americans nearly scored a winner in extra time. Jhon Lucumí hit the crossbar with a header, and Jáminton Campaz missed a great chance when he was one-on-one with Kobel.
After the loss, Arias said Colombia still has work to do.
“Clearly, something is missing. We haven’t been able to win with the national team. We all want to achieve something important because people deserve it.
“It’s something we need to reflect on carefully, and hopefully we’ll discover what is still missing.”
Switzerland played without their injured breakout star Johan Manzambi, who had scored three goals and made two assists earlier in the tournament. But Rubén Vargas recovered from a minor injury and came off the bench to score the winning penalty.
The Swiss were also missing Luca Jaquez and Michel Aebischer. Colombia played without striker Jhon Córdoba, who was injured in the Round of 32 against Ghana.
Both teams had chances in a close match. Gustavo Puerta forced a great save from Kobel in the first half, while Camilo Vargas made good stops to deny Fabian Rieder and Dan Ndoye.
After 120 minutes without a goal, the match went to penalties. Switzerland kept their composure and earned a historic place in the quarter-finals.
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