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The inaugural season of the UEFA Nations League will be coming to an end this week with four teams, Portugal, Switzerland, The Netherlands and England fighting it out to win the very first edition of this competition.
The finals will take place in Portugal this year with Porto and Guimarães serving as the host cities. The first semi-final between Portugal and Switzerland will be played at the Estadio do Dragao, Porto.
Portugal were drawn with Italy and Poland in the group stage and qualified for the finals comfortably with 2 wins and 2 draws. The current European champions were without their star player Cristiano Ronaldo during the group stage, however, the 34-year-old Juventus forward is all set to make an appearance during the finals.
Switzerland locked horns with Belgium and Iceland in the group stage and qualified for the finals in dramatic fashion as they defeated Belgium on the final match day 5-2 after conceding 2 goals within the first 20 minutes of the game. Both Belgium and Switzerland had 9 points, however, the latter progressed due to a superior goal difference.
We shall now take a look at 5 key players that will play a vital role in this all-important semi-final between Portugal and Switzerland.
#5 Gonçalo Guedes (Portugal)
The 22-year-old winger has made 15 appearances for the Portugal National Team and was a part of the Portuguese squad at the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. He scored his first international goal on 10 November 2017 against Saudi Arabia and also provided an assist for Manuel Fernandes earlier in the game.
He was loaned to Spanish side Valencia CF in 2017 by Paris Saint-Germain and was signed by the former for €40 million in August 2018. The winger made 38 appearances for Valencia this season scoring 8 goals and won the Copa del Rey as Valencia ended Barcelona's 4-year reign over the Spanish cup competition.
Guedes has a great passing ability due to his awareness about the position of his teammates on the pitch. Along with his passing abilities, he can also dribble past defenders and find spaces in the final third to set up his teammates.
He will play a pivotal role in Wednesday's semi-final against Switzerland and his link-up with Cristiano Ronaldo will help Portugal pose a threat to the Swiss defence.
#4 Xherdan Shaqiri (Switzerland)
The 27-year-old winger has been playing for the Swiss National Team since 2010 and has represented them at 3 World Cups. In his 80 appearances for the Swiss national team, he has scored 22 goals.
Shaqiri signed for Liverpool in July 2018 on a five-year deal as the Merseyside club triggered his £13.5 million release clause. He made 30 appearances this season, scoring 6 goals, all of which came in the Premier League.
The Swiss international was an unused substitute in Liverpool's 2-0 triumph over Tottenham Hotspur in Saturday's Champions League final in Madrid and would be highly motivated to step out on the pitch in Wednesday's semi-final against Portugal.
Playing as a right winger, Shaqiri is an unpredictable player who is clinical in front of the goal. He has an excellent vision and is able to find spaces to initiate attacking moves. Such remarkable abilities have earned him the nickname "Alpine Messi".
He played an important role for Switzerland during the group stage matches and will once again be a crucial member of the team when they go up against Portugal.
#3 Bernardo Silva (Portugal)
The Portuguese midfielder has been playing for the National Team since 2015 and has made 36 appearances thus far. At the 2018 FIFA World Cup, he featured in all 4 matches with Portugal but was knocked out of the tournament following a 2-1 loss to Uruguay.
The 24-year-old has been playing for the English club Manchester City since 2017 and has been a vital member for Pep Guardiola's side that won back-to-back Premier League titles. He made 47 appearances for the City this season and found the back of the net on 13 occasions.
Silva is a versatile player who can be deployed in any attacking position. Such versatility makes him an easy pick for any coach and he becomes a vital part of the team's attacking lineup.
After winning the domestic treble with Manchester City, Silva will be looking forward to winning silverware with his national side when Portugal take on Switzerland in the semi-final of the Nations League.
#2 Haris Seferović (Switzerland)
The 27-year-old Swiss forward has been playing for the National side since 2013 and has scored 17 goals in 59 appearances. He is the current active top scorer in the UEFA Nations League with 5 goals to his name.
He signed for Portuguese club S.L. Benfica in June 2017 and was the club's top goalscorer in the 2018-19 season across all competitions with 27 goals and was also Primeira Liga's top scorer.
Seferović is a traditional goal poacher who is a major threat to the opposition defence during counter attacks. He can make the definitive runs into the opposition box and provide clinical finishing.
His hat-trick against Belgium in the final group game of the nations league ensured Switzerland's qualification to the semi-finals and he will once again be the Swiss team's go-to man when they face Portugal at Estadio do Dragao on Wednesday.
#1 Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal)
The 34-year-old Portuguese talisman took a break from National duties after the conclusion of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia but returned earlier this year to play the qualifying matches for UEFA Euro 2020 against Ukraine and Serbia.
He had a decent season with Italian club Juventus as he scored 28 goals in 43 appearances across all competitions and was only able to get his hands on the Scudetto in his first season for the Old Lady.
For the National side, he has been delivering for more than a decade now as he is currently the top goalscorer for Portugal with 85 goals and would be eyeing to achieve the 100-goal mark before retiring. He also captained Portugal to their first ever major international title in the UEFA Euro 2016.
After achieving moderate success in his first season with Juventus, Ronaldo would be fired up to guide Portugal to nations league triumph and lift the trophy in front of the home crowd on Sunday at the Estadio do Dragao, Porto.
