Former Arsenal midfielder Granit Xhaka has moved to play down any tension with former Tottenham midfielder Pierre Emile Hojbjerg ahead of the clash between Switzerland and Denmark.
Blick cover comments from the pair today and how the duo are trying to play things down after events in the past.
Switzerland host Denmark in matchday four od the Nations League this evening looking to bounce back after a 2-0 defeat to Serbia on Saturday.
They currently sit bottom of group A4 after no wins in their first three games, with Spain top of the group on seven points, Denmark second on six and Serbia in third on four.
It means the meeting has extra important, ramping up the tension in what was already being seen as a revenge match for the Swiss.
That’s thanks to the fact that the last meeting saw a highly controversial incident in which the former Arsenal and Tottenham men went head-to-head.
Hojbjerg was criticised for creating an incident in which Xhaka was sent off, only the second red of his 131 international appearances.
Xhaka ranted after the game, criticising the Danish players and insisting that they showed him and his teammates a lack of respect. His criticism was primarily director at Hojbjerg.
That’s because the former Tottenham man had instructed his teammates to keep playing while Breel Embolo was lying on the ground after an opponent had stepped on his hand. That frustrated Xhaka, who grabbed his fellow midfielder directly and created something of a pile on.
He then took revenge for the incident later on, leading to his red card and an escalation of a rivalry that’s been building for years and was only helped by their respective times at Arsenal and Tottenham.
The pair are keen to play it down ahead of the game, despite it being hyped up from outside by the likes of Blick.
“Xhaka is one of the very best opponents I have ever played against,” said Hojbjerg.
“He has set the tone in the national team for more than ten years and is very important for Switzerland and Leverkusen.”
“It will be a different game this time,” added Xhaka, before playing down any talk of “revenge”.
