Frei and Behrami out of Spanish clash
Tuesday, 15 June 2010
JOHANNESBURG, June 14 (AFP): Switzerland will be missing key players, captain Alexander Frei and midfielder Valon Behrami, for their World Cup opening match against European champions Spain, Swiss coach Ottmar Hitzfeld announced Monday.
Hitzfeld - who has been in the post for two years after a highly successful club career which brought two Champions League successes - said that neither Frei nor Behrami had recovered from ankle and thigh injuries respectively to be fit enough for Wednesday's Group H match.
Frei, who played at both Euro 2004 and the 2006 World Cup finals scoring twice in the latter, injured his right ankle in training on June 9 and has been battling to get fit by riding a bike and running.
"The target is to have him fit for the second match against Chile (on June 21 in Port Elizabeth). It is imperative that he trains intensively, and that he is 100percent fit."
Hitzfeld, who is just one of three coaches to win the Champions League with two different teams in his case Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich, said it was the same principle as regards Kosovo-born, 25-year-old West Ham player Behrami.
Hitzfeld - who has been in the post for two years after a highly successful club career which brought two Champions League successes - said that neither Frei nor Behrami had recovered from ankle and thigh injuries respectively to be fit enough for Wednesday's Group H match.
Frei, who played at both Euro 2004 and the 2006 World Cup finals scoring twice in the latter, injured his right ankle in training on June 9 and has been battling to get fit by riding a bike and running.
"The target is to have him fit for the second match against Chile (on June 21 in Port Elizabeth). It is imperative that he trains intensively, and that he is 100percent fit."
Hitzfeld, who is just one of three coaches to win the Champions League with two different teams in his case Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich, said it was the same principle as regards Kosovo-born, 25-year-old West Ham player Behrami.