Players had a disagreement in Denmark-Switzerland
Denmark and Switzerland played out a goalless draw this Saturday in a friendly match in Copenhagen, but tempers flared midway through the second half between Morten Hljulmand, Sporting midfielder, and Granit Xhaka, from Bayer Leverkusen.
The Leo midfielder prevented the Swiss from scoring a free-kick, with a kick to touch the ball underneath the opponent; Xhaka didn’t like it and got up to ask for explanations, and there was pushing and shoving from one side to the other. The referee ended up showing yellow to both.
In the end, the Swiss spoke of a lack of respect. «Does he want to show himself to the coach in a private game? I suffered a clear foul, I had the ball for a free kick and he kicked me. This has no place in football and is not done, whether in a friendly match or in a qualifying game. It’s a matter of respect,” he said, asking the Danish press to question him about the moment.
“These are situations that happen during a game, there is some commotion, it happens,” said the Sporting midfielder. «It’s the type of player I am, I give everything on the field, a lot of energy, but on the other hand I also leave those things on the field, there’s no need to take them outside the four lines», he said in the mixed zone at the end.
And what did they say to each other? «Actually, I didn’t understand what he said», said Hjulmand, who hopes to continue to be called up to the national team: «I have few caps, I hope I can continue to be called up.»
