Hungary vs Switzerland LIVE!

Switzerland began their Euro 2024 campaign in style with a 3-1 Group A victory over tournament dark horses Hungary with Kwadwo Duah, Michel Aebischer and Breel Embolo all on target on Saturday.

Kwadwo Duah and Michel Aebischer put the Swiss into a commanding, and deserved, two-goal at half-time against a Hungary side struggling to retain possession. But the second half saw an improvement from the Hungarians and, at the second time of asking, pulled one back from Barnabas Varga to set up a thrilling finale.

But it was not to be as Breel Embolo came off the bench to seal a huge, opening win to go level on points with hosts Germany in Group A. It was Hungary’s first competitive defeat since September 2022 and now they must take points off hosts Germany to keep their tournament alive. Read the game back below with our dedicated match blog.

Hungary vs Switzerland latest updates

• GOAL! Embolo wraps it up at the death

• GOAL! Varga pulls one back!

• GOAL! Aebischer doubles up before the break

• GOAL! Duah slots home for early lead

Full-time!

15:55 , Alex Young

97min: That’s it! Another great game at these Euros.

It’s Spain vs Croatia up next in an hour. You can follow that game here.

15:54 , Alex Young

96min: Switzerland are going level on points with Germany in Group A. It’s Scotland up next.

GOAL!

15:51 , Alex Young

94min: That’s that! Embolo secures all three points with a superb lob from the edge of the area.

15:50 , Alex Young

92min: It’s all Switzerland at the moment. Hungary cannot get out.

15:49 , Alex Young

91min: Five minutes added on.

15:48 , Alex Young

90min: Xhaka almost caps a fine performance with a goal! Heading at goal to win another corner.

15:47 , Alex Young

89min: But it is Switzerland who win a late corner, with Hungary so open at the back.

15:45 , Alex Young

87min: Hungary are throwing everything at Switzerland. Varga is everywhere.

15:44 , Alex Young

86min: Ndoye's time is up. Him and Freuler are replaced by Rieder and Sierro.

15:43 , Alex Young

85min: Switzerland preparing more subs.

15:42 , Alex Young

83min: This Adam guy is getting about well for a man who looks like a fridge. He whips in a superb, and fierce, cross towards Varga which sends Switzerland scrambling.

15:38 , Alex Young

80min: Double change for Hungary now as Szalai and Kerkez are replaced by Dardai and Adam.

This Adam guy is massive.

15:34 , Alex Young

76min: Embolo busy with his first touches, albeit showing clear signs of rustiness. He almost carves open a chance for Duah and then himself, showing good movement.

15:32 , Alex Young

74min: Here he is. Vargas makes way.

15:30 , Alex Young

73min: Embolo is being prepped.

15:29 , Alex Young

71min: This game is getting really stretched. Duah does brilliantly down the left, before cutting inside and letting fly, winning a corner off Orban.

15:26 , Alex Young

69min: Double change for Switzerland. Widmer and Duah make way for Stergiou and Amdouni.

GOAL!

15:24 , Alex Young

66min: Now he does! Varga makes amends immediately but heading home Szoboszlai’s superb cross to the back post.

GOAL!

15:22 , Alex Young

63min: Varga had to score. He HAD to score.

It’s a perfect cross from Sallai on the right, and the striker does everything right... apart from the finish. He head wide of the far post.

15:18 , Alex Young

59min: Freuler becomes the second Swiss player to be booked today, stopping a counter-attack.

15:16 , Alex Young

57min: Andros Townsend on ITV co-commentary is not impressed by Szoboszlai’s attitude.

He says: “You can’t have him throwing his hands up and pulling a face.”

15:12 , Alex Young

54min: Vargas is next Switzerland player to test Gulacsi and again it’s Xhaka pulling the strings.

15:09 , Alex Young

51min: Half a sight of goal for Szoboszlai but he rushes a first-time effort from the edge of the area, that flashes wide of goal.

15:06 , Alex Young

48min: First real chance for the game falls to Duah, who bends a shot on goal from 15 yards after a smart Xhaka cut-back.

Second half!

15:05 , Alex Young

46min: Hungary do make a change as Bolla replaces Lang at wing-back.

15:04 , Alex Young

The teams are back out. Any changes from Hungary?

Swiss flying high

14:51 , Alex Young

Duah and Aebischer with their first international goals to give the Swiss a commanding lead.

Nothing coming off for Hungary yet. Xhaka dominating the midfield battle.

Half-time!

14:48 , Alex Young

48min: There’s the whistle.

14:48 , Alex Young

46min: Two minutes added on.

GOAL!

14:46 , Alex Young

45min: A huge, huge goal. Aebischer doubles the Swiss lead just before the break with a superb, curling effort from the edge of the area.

Gulacsi left with no chance.

14:43 , Alex Young

42min: Xhaka gets a talking to from the ref for a clumsy foul on Sallai.

14:41 , Alex Young

40min: Szalai wins a free kick, again around 40 yards from goal. Szoboszlai again with the delivery and this time Orban gets on the end of it, but it’s easy for Sommer.

That was a chance.

14:41 , Alex Young

39min: Kerkez holds off Schar and drill a low cross into the area, but it’s hacked clear at the second attempt.

14:39 , Alex Young

37min: Ndoye does brilliantly to get to the byline, beat a defender and try to find a team-mate in the area, but is eventually crowded out.

The Swiss by far the most dangerous.

14:34 , Alex Young

33min: Szoboszlai floats in a free kick from deep, about 40 yards out, which swerves through the air but is easy for Sommer.

14:33 , Alex Young

30min: Hungary starting to get more of a foot on the ball. This opening half an hour has flown by.

14:30 , Alex Young

26min: Hungary are getting frustrated, struggling to string passes together and going in late. They need to calm down a bit, otherwise this game will get away from them.

14:27 , Alex Young

23min: Xhaka is enjoying himself out there, pinging off the passes as Hungary fly in with challenges.

14:22 , Alex Young

19min: It should be 2-0!

Superb pressing from Vargas to nick the ball off of Szalai and fire at goal, but the keeper makes a crucial, crucial save.

Vargas really should have scored.

14:19 , Alex Young

16min: Right, what do Hungary have in response?

14:19 , Alex Young

Not a bad way to mark your competitive international debut!

GOAL!

14:15 , Alex Young

13min: Out of nothing, Switzerland lead! Duah beats the offside flag, leaves Orban flat-footed and slots confidently beyond Gulacsi for his first international goal.

It is initially flagged offside but VAR award it!

14:11 , Alex Young

10min: A lovely break from Hungary as Fiola is sent scampering down the right and into acres. He decides to cut inside and find Sallai, who sets himself on the edge of the area but his shot it still wild and wide.

14:09 , Alex Young

8min: It’s a fast-paced start from both teams, and Switzerland are trying to calm it down.

14:06 , Alex Young

5min: Early yellow card! Widner goes in rashly on Kerkez and the referee doesn’t hesitate.

That’s a bit over the top, surely.

14:04 , Alex Young

2min: Half a sight of goal for Aebischer, who collects the ball on the turn in the area, but he is a good yard offside.

Kick-off!

14:02 , Alex Young

1min: Here we go!

13:58 , Alex Young

These national anthems are being absolutely belted out. Some atmosphere in Cologne.

13:55 , Alex Young

Here come the teams.

Hungary boss Marco Rossi

13:54 , Alex Young

“Let's see this time what happens. We qualified not by chance but because we deserve to and we're here and we would like to be the protagonist.

“We would like to give joy and happiness to our supporters.”

13:46 , Alex Young

Fighting talk in the stands. Not long until kick-off now.

13:38 , Alex Young

Lively bunch, these Hungarians.

Switzerland coach Yakin on Duah

13:33 , Alex Young

"His preparation was very good and he's a centre forward. Breel [Embolo] is not ready yet, so maybe we can bring him on during the game, but this is how we'll start."

Szoboszlai makes Euros history

13:23 , Alex Young

Before a ball has been kicked, Szoboszlai has already made Euros history.

The Hungary and Liverpool midfielder has become the youngest-ever captain in tournament history. He’s just 23 years, seven months and 21 days old.

Some surprises

13:09 , Alex Young

So, as expected, Szoboszlai captains Hungary and supports Varga in attack. Bournemouth’s Kerkez also gets the nod to start.

For Switzerland, the attacking threesome of Amdouni, Shaqiri and Embolo are only fit for a place on the bench.

That’s a blow for the Swiss.

Team news in full

13:03 , Alex Young

Hungary XI: Gulacsi, Lang, Orban, Szalai, Fiola, Nagy, Schafer, Kerkez, Szoboszlai, Sallai, Varga

Subs: Dibusz, Szappanos, Balogh, Nego, Ádám, Bolla, Kleinheisler, Gazdag, Styles, Zs. Nagy, Botka, Csoboth, Dardai, Horvath, Kata

Switzerland XI: Sommer, Schar, Akanji, Rodriguez, Widmer, Freuler, Xhaka, Ndoye, Aebischer, Vargas, Duah

Subs: Mvogo, Kobel, Stergiou, Elvedi, Embolo, Okafor, Steffen, Zesiger, Sierro, Shaqiri, Jashari, Amdouni, Rieder

Hungary XI

12:53 , Alex Young

...and Hungary!

12:51 , Alex Young

No Shaqiri or Amdouni in the Swiss starting XI.

Switzerland XI

12:46 , Alex Young

Here’s how the Swiss line-up!

'The pressure being off could help Switzerland'

12:41 , Alex Young

Phillipe Senderos, unsurprisingly, agrees. The former centre-back has predicted a 2-1 win for his nation today.

“It's a game for Switzerland that they need to win, even though it's their opener, but Hungary are a very good team,” he told OLGB.

He added: “I think the pressure being off could help Switzerland, but we always expect the team to do better than the time before, even though we're a very small country.

“So I think a successful tournament would be to get out of the group and then see what happens from there.”

Latest odds

12:34 , Alex Young

Switzerland have the edge today, according to the bookies.

• Hungary: 12/5

• Draw: 13/8

• Switzerland: 11/10

(Odds via Betfair)

Hungary fans on their way

12:27 , Alex Young

Quite the sight.

Xhaka addresses past Switzerland bust-up

12:21 , Alex Young

Granit Xhaka has played down reports of a rift with head coach Murat Yakin.

Xhaka was asked to cast his mind back to September when he was critical of the team's preparation before a 2-2 draw with Kosovo.

He said: "We are glad to have a coach who listens to us and who wants to talk to us. We have never had problems.

"We are adult enough to clarify everything. I have a great relationship with the coach.

"The last six or eight months, he came to see me many times. We met in Dusseldorf, we had dinner together and drank a lot of wine together.

"Everything is going fine. We are both ambition and we want to be successful.

"Those who know me, know I don't like to talk about ifs, buts and hypothesis. I packed my luggage to spend here a lot of time."

Score prediction

12:08 , Alex Young

Hungary certainly look worth their tag of dark horses but the Swiss are so experienced and are capable of keeping today’s opponents at arm’s length.

Draw, 1-1.

Predicted XIs

12:01 , Alex Young

Predicted Hungary XI: Gulacsi, Lang, Orban, Szalai, Nego, Nagy, Schafer, Kerkez, Szoboszlai, Sallai, Varga

Predicted Switzerland XI: Sommer, Schar, Akanji, Rodriguez, Widmer, Freuler, Xhaka, Ndoye, Shaqiri, Vargas, Amdouni

Switzerland team news

11:55 , Alex Young

Steven Zuber is a doubt for Switzerland after picking up a knock in the friendly draw with Austria, but both Breel Embolo and Denis Zakaria have shaken off injury issues to be in contention.

Captain Granit Xhaka, Manuel Akanji and Xherdan Shaqiri should all start. Burnley striker Zeki Amdouni will lead the line and be supported by Shaqiri.

The 32-year-old has scored or assisted 46 per cent of Switzerland's 28 major tournament goals (nine goals and four assists) since the 2014 World Cup.

Hungary team news

11:46 , Alex Young

Liverpool's Dominik Szoboszlai has shaken off an injury concern ahead of the game and is expected to start for Hungary.

Experienced goalkeeper Peter Gulacsi will again get the nod, in front of a back line that includes the likes of Willi Orban and Attila Szalai.

Bournemouth's Milos Kerkez should also get the nod, supporting Barnabas Varga - who scored 29 goals for Ferencvaros last season - from out wide.

Where to watch Hungary vs Switzerland

11:37 , Alex Young

TV channel: The game will be broadcast live and free-to-air in the UK on ITV1 and STV. Coverage starts 1:15pm BST ahead of a 2pm kick-off.

Live stream: ITVX and the STV Player will provide a live stream service to fans online.

LIVE coverage: Follow all the action this afternoon with Standard Sport’s dedicated match blog.

Welcome

11:32 , Alex Young

Good morning and welcome to the Evening Standard’s LIVE coverage of the Euro 2024 clash between Hungary and Switzerland.

It’s the second game of Group A, after Germany thumped Scotland in the tournament curtain-raiser.

That result, and performance, looked very ominous for Scotland and means today’s two teams will likely fight it out to finish as runners-up behind the hosts.

Kick-off is at 2pm BST. Stick with us.