The next destination of our alphabetical world tour is Switzerland. Despite having a relatively small population, Switzerland have appeared in 11 World Cup finals tournaments, though they haven’t won a knockout game since 1938.
According to the Premier League website, 29 players have represented Switzerland in the Premier League, the first of whom debuted back in 1994.
First Player – Marc Hottiger (Newcastle, Everton; 1994-97)
Right-back Marc Hottiger joined Newcastle in the summer of 1994 and enjoyed a solid debut campaign, making 38 league appearances as the Magpies finished sixth.
Newcastle bought Warren Barton in June 1995 however, which spelled the end for Hottiger. He made just one substitute appearance the following season as Newcastle famously failed to win the title.
He sealed a move to Everton midway through 1995/96 and made a further 17 Premier League appearances before returning to Switzerland in the summer of 1997.
Most Appearances: Stéphane Henchoz – 243 (Blackburn, Liverpool, Wigan; 1997-2008)
Defender Stephane Henchoz rejected Manchester United to join Blackburn Rovers in 1997, signing after an impressive spell in Germany with Hamburg.
He remained with the Riversiders until their relegation in 1998/99 when he joined Liverpool. It was with the Reds that Henchoz enjoyed his most successful spell in England, winning an unconventional quintuple of trophies in 2000/01 (FA Cup, League Cup, UEFA Cup, Charity Shield and UEFA Super Cup).
Henchoz infamously handled a goalbound shot at 0-0 during the 2001 FA Cup Final but was reprieved as the incident was not seen by the referee. He suffered a succession of injury problems at the end of his time with Liverpool and spent his final playing years with Wigan Athletic and back at Blackburn before retiring in 2008.
Top Scorer: Xherdan Shaqiri – 22 (Stoke, Liverpool; 2015-present)
Perhaps a surprisingly small total, but Xherdan Shaqiri’s 22 league goals for Stoke and Liverpool are enough to make him the highest-scoring Swiss player in the Premier League. In fact, no other Swiss has scored more than seven.
Shaqiri joined cold and windy Stoke after spells with European giants Bayern Munich and Inter Milan, becoming the Potters’ record signing in the summer of 2015. He swapped Stoke for Liverpool in 2018 following the Potters’ relegation to the Championship.
He won the Champions League in his first season at Anfield but has struggled with injury for much of the current campaign, making only six appearances to date.
Current Players
Five Swiss players appeared in the Premier League before the suspension last season – Granit Xhaka (Arsenal), Xherdan Shaqiri (Liverpool), Fabian Schär (Newcastle United), Josip Drmić (Norwich City) and Albian Ajeti (Watford).
Trivia
- Gökhan Inler is the only Swiss player to have won the Premier League (Leicester City – 2015/16).
- Former Arsenal defender Stephan Lichtsteiner is currently the third most-capped Swiss player of all time (108 caps).
- Switzerland are the only nation to have been eliminated from a World Cup without conceding a goal, doing so in 2006.
