When the Champions League playoff round comes around, fans get excited. It’s the last big step before the group stage where Europe’s best clubs fight it out under the bright lights. But one team going into this stage with some serious problems is FC Basel from Switzerland. Before their important clash against FC Copenhagen from Denmark, Swiss newspaper Basler Zeitung reported that FC Basel have major defensive challenges. Let’s break down what’s going on, why it matters, and what it might mean for this big game.
FC Basel’s Strong Past – But a Shaky Start This Season
First, it’s important to know that FC Basel are no small club. They’re one of Switzerland’s most successful teams, and last season they even won the Swiss Super League, finishing ahead of favorites like Young Boys. That’s impressive, because Young Boys have been dominating Swiss soccer in recent years.
But this season, things don’t look as steady. FC Basel’s defense seems disorganized, and they’ve been leaking goals. So far in their league games, they’ve been giving up 1.75 goals per game. If you compare that to last season, when they only allowed 1.13 goals per game, it’s a pretty big difference. That kind of drop in defensive stability is not good news before facing a strong opponent like FC Copenhagen.
⚽ Soccer Fact: On average, most championship-winning teams in Europe allow less than one goal per game. A strong defense is usually the foundation of any title-winning team.
Inexperienced Defense
Another issue for FC Basel is the lack of experience among their defensive players. The defenders and defensive midfielders who are likely to play have very little history in European competitions. To give you an idea, the six possible players combined have appeared in just 12 matches in European club competitions. That’s an average of only two matches per player!
That means many of FC Basel’s players could be making their European competition debuts in this huge playoff match. Imagine being thrown straight into the Champions League playoff, where the pressure is massive, and your opponent is a team like Copenhagen, who are used to European nights. That’s a lot to handle.
The players fighting for the central defense spots are:
Jonas Adjetey
Nicolas Vouilloz
Adrian Barisic
And for the defensive midfield roles, the options are:
Metinho
Léo Leroy
Koba Koindredi
But here’s the tricky part: even though Nicolas Vouilloz (7 matches in Europe with Servette) and Koba Koindredi (3 matches in Europe with Sporting CP) are the most experienced, the media reports say they probably won’t even play. That means FC Basel’s lineup could feature multiple players with zero experience at this level.
⚽ Soccer Fact: In 2019, Ajax Amsterdam stunned Europe by reaching the Champions League semifinals with one of the youngest squads ever. But even that Ajax team had players who already had European match experience. FC Basel’s situation is riskier because their defenders are so inexperienced.
Set Piece Struggles
Another weakness for FC Basel is defending set pieces. They’ve already allowed four goals from set pieces this season. For those who don’t know, set pieces are things like free kicks, corner kicks, or even throw-ins when the ball is restarted in a dangerous area. Good teams know how to take advantage of these moments, and Copenhagen are exactly the kind of team who can punish FC Basel if they don’t improve.
⚽ Soccer Fact: About 25–30% of all soccer goals in top leagues come from set pieces. That means if you’re bad at defending them, you’re in big trouble!
Comparing This Season to Last Season
Let’s look closer at the numbers:
Last season: FC Basel gave up only 1.13 goals per game. They had the best attack and the best defense in the Swiss Super League. That’s how they became champions.
This season so far: They’ve conceded 7 goals in their opening league games. That’s 1.75 goals per game.
The difference doesn’t seem huge at first glance, but over a full season, that kind of gap can mean losing many more games. In soccer, consistency matters, and when your defense allows almost two goals a game, it forces your attack to always score multiple times just to win.
Coach Ludovic Magnin’s Choices
FC Basel’s coach, Ludovic Magnin, is expected to stick with his 4-2-3-1 formation. In this system, there are four defenders, two defensive midfielders, three attacking midfielders, and one striker up front. The system can be strong if the defensive players are disciplined and the two holding midfielders give extra protection. But with inexperienced players, it could be risky.
Magnin will have to choose carefully:
Two center-backs from Adjetey, Vouilloz, and Barisic.
Two defensive midfielders from Metinho, Leroy, and Koindredi.
That means four players out of those six will be facing Copenhagen in FC Basel’s starting lineup. And since most of them don’t have European experience, it could be a nervous night.
Copenhagen’s Advantage
While FC Basel are struggling, FC Copenhagen are known for being a disciplined team with experience in European competitions. They’ve played in both the Champions League and the Europa League many times in the past two decades. They’re used to high-pressure matches, and that’s a big advantage.
The first leg of this playoff will be played at Basel’s home ground, St. Jakob-Park, on Wednesday at 21:00 CET. Playing at home can help Basel, since their fans will be loud and supportive, but if the defense isn’t solid, even home advantage may not be enough.
⚽ Soccer Fact: St. Jakob-Park is the largest stadium in Switzerland, with a capacity of over 38,000. It has hosted Champions League matches, Europa League matches, and even the 2016 Europa League final.
What This Means for FC Basel
To sum it up:
FC Basel’s defense is leaking goals.
Their defenders and midfielders have very little European experience.
They’ve been weak at set pieces.
Their stats are worse than last season.
All of this makes their clash against Copenhagen extra difficult. If FC Basel want to reach the Champions League group stage, they’ll need to fix these problems fast. Otherwise, they risk being knocked out and missing out on the big stage, which would be a disappointment for both the club and their fans.
Final Thoughts
Soccer is unpredictable, and sometimes inexperienced players rise to the occasion. Maybe FC Basel’s young defenders will surprise everyone. But on paper, things look worrying for them. Copenhagen will know exactly where Basel’s weaknesses are, and they’ll try to take advantage.
The Champions League playoff round is always dramatic, and this match is shaping up to be no different. FC Basel have history, talent up front with stars like Xherdan Shaqiri, and passionate fans behind them. But without tightening their defense, they could be in for a very tough night.
⚽ Soccer Fact: Since the Champions League was rebranded in 1992, no team has ever won the tournament while conceding more than 2 goals per game on average. Defense really does win championships!
