Xhaka tells Swiss fans to ‘keep dreaming’ ahead of the FIFA World Cup quarter-final in Argentina

Switzerland captain Granit Xhaka told fans to keep dreaming as he prepared to lead his team against Lionel Messi’s Argentina in the World Cup quarter-final on Saturday.

The midfielder said Switzerland’s «overarching goal» was to beat the defending champions and reach the semi-finals for the first time.

«As far as the fans are concerned, keep dreaming. I’m someone who always dreams and dreams can come true,» he told reporters in Kansas City.

“And if we want to make our dreams come true, you have to work, you have to sweat, you have to give 100 percent.

«And sometimes you have to do something new. You really have to push your limits if you want to beat Argentina.»

Swiss coach Murat Yakin said he had “many solutions” to stop Messi, who is the tournament’s joint top scorer with eight goals.

“Tomorrow we will act as one unit on the field,” he said. “We will try to make passes and keep up the pressure against Argentina, the reigning champions.

«It’s clear that we will try to do the work on the field. We can talk a lot, but in the end it has to really translate on the field. And we have our solutions.»

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Xhaka admitted it was not possible to keep the marauding Messi quiet for the entire match, but said his men would be “smart”.

«I don’t know if we can stop him in 90 minutes,» he said. “It’s going to be difficult.

«We have to be very smart, though. We have to be compact, close the gaps and not give him too much space. We will obviously try to play in position. When we have the ball, he won’t be able to act so much.»

Yakin said midfielder Johan Manzambi, who was excellent in the group stages, would not play against Argentina after failing to recover from injury.

Published on July 10, 2026