Overview
The pressure is quickly mounting on Swedish coach Jon Dahl Tomasson after a poor start to the World Cup qualifying campaign. That included a surprise 0-2 loss to Kosovo in the previous international break.
Arsenal legend Freddie Ljungberg is one of many Swedish football experts who expressed disappointment with the result.
The 2-2 draw with Slovenia left Sweden with only one point after the opening two matches, putting them at risk of really missing another big tournament.
In recent years, Sweden has failed to qualify for EURO 2024, as well as three of the last four World Cups. In fact, their last appearance in a major tournament was EURO 2020.
The Swedish Football Federation still has faith in Tomasson, while the Director of Football continues to support him amid the team's decline. Tomasson hopes to repay that trust by end his poor run of form.
While Sweden are struggling to improve their form, Switzerland simply wants to maintain their current impressive progress.
Switzerland had a great year, winning five of their six games and getting off to a great start in the World Cup qualifiers.
They opened the qualifying round with a 4-0 win over Kosovo and continued to beat Slovenia with a score of 3-0, both at home.
This team has participated in the last 5 World Cups. Coach Murat Yakin is hoping to bring Switzerland to the biggest football festival on the planet for the sixth consecutive time, after a solid start to the qualifying campaign.
Personnel situation
Sweden entered the October international break without the services of one of the most experienced players - the 3-year-old goalkeeper Robin Olsen.
The Malmo star has publicly announced his conflict with head coach Jon Dahl Tomasson.
Olsen's replacement in the match against Switzerland will likely be Viktor Johansson, a goalkeeper of Stoke City, who is aiming for his 10th national team cap.
In attack, Sweden still has many notable strikers such as Alexander Isak (Liverpool), Viktor Gyokeres (Arsenal) and Anthony Elanga (New Newcastle United) - names that are all eager to leave their mark.
On the other side of the front line, Granit Xhaka - the leader of the Swiss midfield - is preparing to have his 140th match for the national team after an impressive performance in the match against Slovenia.
Simon Sohm is still doubtful to feature through a leg injury, while Fabian Rieder is expected to feature in the starting line-up.
Up front, Breel Embolo, a striker currently playing for Rennes, continues to be Switzerland's main striker. He is aiming for his 21st goal for the national team.
Expected lineup:
Sweden: Johansson, Gudmundsson, Hien, Ekdal, Svensson, Saletros, Ayari, Larsson, Bernhardsson, Gyokeres, Isak.
Switzerland: Kobel, Rodriguez, Akanji, Elvedi, Widmer, Xhaka, Rieder, Freuler, Vargas, Embolo, Ndoye.
The match between Switzerland and Sweden takes place at 1:45 am on October 11 (Vietnam time).
