Following the opening draw with Qatar, tension arose among the Swiss team. Granit Xhaka voiced his criticism and faced significant media backlash. During the 4-1 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Swiss captain scored and took the opportunity to address recent events with a hand gesture. In an interview with Magenta TV, the 33-year-old detailed his reasoning behind the provocation.
“There’s often a lot of commotion surrounding me, and I admit I sometimes provoke it,” he commented. “Perhaps people could take pride in a player who has represented the national team for so long? But I’m okay with the criticism; what truly matters is our performance on the field: that the team supports me and that the coach is behind me,” Xhaka expressed.
This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.