Given the current economic tailspin in which Portugal finds itself, it seems (in the words of Porto’s João Moutinho this week) “absurd" to use the word ‘crisis’ in the context of winning, drawing or losing a soccer match here and there. Yet it was in wet and windy Lisbon on this Wednesday night that we were reminded that reputations are forged in times of hardship.
It had been assumed that Basel would be offered as a sacrificial lamb to Benfica’s stylish side, and the latter’s hurricane-like start to this Champions League match suggested it might be a role to which Heiko Vogel’s team would be well-suited. Widely assumed to have mislaid its mojo with the recent departure of head coach Thorsten Fink (hired by Hamburg on October 13), Basel instead dug deep to remind us it is no fumbling amateur on the European stage.
“Basel is like a Swiss watch – you know exactly how and when everything’s going to happen," said Benfica coach Jorge Jesus, describing his side’s opponent pre-match. He was rubbishing the suggestion that Fink’s replacement could hide his plan for the match, but however labored Jesus’ simile was, his point had a semblance of foundation. Basel has a history, having qualified for the Champions League more than any other Swiss side (four times), and became its nation’s only club to successfully progress from the group stage – under coach Christian Gross in 2002/03, when it twice drew with Liverpool (thus eliminating the Reds) and beat Juventus and Deportivo La Coruña.
Yet the ‘same old, same old’ argument overlooks the profound change afoot at the club. Gross left in May 2009, his dismissal for failing to win the Super League title a poor recompense for a decade of unprecedented success which took in four league titles and four Swiss Cup wins (besides the European success). Fink and assistant coach Vogel were on holiday together in Turkey during the summer of 2009 when they heard that Basel wanted them to take the managerial reins following Gross’ departure. The duo’s paths had initially crossed at Bayern Munich in the 1990s, where Vogel was a B team player, but they became firm friends after doing their coaching badges together in 2005.
Fink’s departure after successive league titles appeared to herald the end of another era at St. Jakob-Park, particularly with doubts over the future direction of the club. It was announced in August that president and long-term benefactor Gisela Oeri (one of the three richest people in Switzerland, having an estimated wealth of CHF 9-10 billion – US$10.2-11.3 billion) would be stepping down in December on health grounds. ‘Gigi’ supported the club for 20 years before investing, so she clearly hasn’t taken the decision lightly.
It remains to be seen how hard this will hit. A charismatic leader known for her easy charm and good humor as much as her investment, she will be missed on an ideological as well as (potentially) on a financial one. However, the timing of Oeri’s withdrawal could be significant as it comes at a potential watershed in the development of the Swiss Super League, with new money arriving at clubs including Servette and Neuchatel Xamax (with the latter funded by the erratic Chechen oligarch Bulat Chagaev).
If three wins in Vogel’s opening three league games (a better start to his coaching tenure, incidentally, than either Gross or Fink managed at the club) left room for optimism, the swathe of Benfica’s win in Switzerland two weeks ago suggested that the Swiss side might have been out of its depth. It also hinted that the bravado and belief that served it so well in the thrilling draw at Manchester United in the second group game might have disappeared with Fink. That captain Marco Streller had described a “huge emotional void" left by his departure only reinforced the sentiment.
Basel’s current crop is reflective of an exciting new era in the Swiss game - an amalgam of fledgling stars and the highlights of its recent past - but with Streller and top scorer Alexander Frei pulling out of the return in Lisbon late on, Vogel was shorn of yet more knowhow as he sought an unlikely route to qualification. Whereas Streller has never looked convincing at club level outside his home nation the case of Frei – who has scored 11 times in his last nine games - is less straightforward.
He scored regularly in impressive spells at Rennes and Borussia Dortmund (he was even Ligue 1’s top scorer in 2005) but has endured disappointment on the big stage with Switzerland. He was banned after he was caught spitting at England’s Steven Gerrard in Euro 2004, and he was heartbroken by the knee ligament tear in the opening match of the same tournament four years later that ruled him out of a competition co-hosted by the Swiss. His brace at Old Trafford nevertheless proved he is still a force to be reckoned with at 32.
Yet it was a case of cometh the hour, cometh the men. As Benfica attacked in waves in the first 20 minutes, 22-year-old goalkeeper Yann Sommer performed admirably to keep the Eagles at bay. Slowly, captain Benjamin Huggel and Granit Xhaka (19) started to get a grip on midfield, Fabian Frei threatened with his forward runs and delicate touch, and the stellar left-foot of Xherdan Shaqiri (20) began to cause problems on the right.
The half-time stats at the Luz bore witness to a remarkable recovery from Vogel’s men from that early Benfica onslaught. They commandeered 56 percent of first-half possession, and the overwhelming feeling was that the highly-influential Shaqiri had probably been responsible for a good 30% of that on his own. That balance was the same at the final whistle, by which time Huggel had plundered a deserved leveler.
Vogel, still only 35 himself, glowed after the game. “Benfica always pressured us," he said, “just as they did in Basel. But I’m very happy with the attitude of my players, who stuck together throughout the whole game. I feel very proud of them and they deserved the draw."
Writing in Thursday’s O Jogo, José Manuel Ribeiro acknowledged the clear difference between Benfica’s Champions League difficulties of the week and those of rival Porto (losing at surprise package APOEL on Tuesday). “No player from the Cypriot league will have that is anticipated for Fabian Frei, Shaqiri or Granit Xhaka, members of Swiss football’s best-ever pool of talent." Far from being fettered by its seniors, Basel – and Switzerland – is already confident enough in its young talents to let them lead the way.
