Instead of the cauldron of Belgrade, the national team plays in the provinces – in front of 8,000 spectators

The Swiss national team is looking to pick up its first points in its third Nations League game. The match against Serbia will take place in the small town of Leskovac in a small, pretty stadium.

The Marakana Stadium of Red Star Belgrade. This notorious stadium with its scary tunnel and unique atmosphere can hold 60,000 spectators. European champions Spain found the Nations League opener extremely difficult and had to settle for a 0-0 draw.

The Swiss national team will not be traveling to Belgrade on Saturday, but to the Serbian province. To Leskovac, a small town with around 60,000 inhabitants in the south of the country, situated on the small river Veternica in the district of Jablanica, just under an hour’s drive from the border with Kosovo.

There is not much here to attract tourists on a trip. Except for the Dubocica Stadium. A modern football arena that was only opened last year, with a capacity of just 8,000 spectators. The Brügglifeld in Aarau can accommodate more fans.

Why is the heated duel between Serbia and Switzerland – for the Serbs it is also a sporting revenge after the defeats in the last two duels against the Nati – taking place in such a small stadium? Apparently, the Serbian Football Association wants the national team to play not only in the capital, but throughout the country in order to bring football closer to the people in the regions far away from Belgrade.

Similar to Switzerland. The national team played its first home game in the Nations League against Spain in Geneva. On Tuesday, they will host Denmark in St.Gallen. The home game against Serbia in November will be played in Zurich. International matches are also regularly played in Basel, Lucerne and Sion.

Serbian association under particular scrutiny

It is reasonable to assume that the match between Serbia and Switzerland was also played in the small Dubocica Stadium in order to keep as few fans as possible under control. The last few games between the national team and Serbia have been heated. In Qatar 2022, Granit Xhaka was the center of attention when he clashed with Serbian players on the pitch and put on Ardon Jashari’s jersey after the game, which was seen as a provocation in Serbia.

Various security precautions have been taken for the match on Saturday evening. The tickets are personalized. This means that spectators must identify themselves. There will also be checks to ensure that no political symbols or messages are visible on flags, shirts and other fan merchandise. The association is under special observation by UEFA. Fans are asked to refrain from causing disturbances such as throwing objects into the playing area or chanting illegally.

The match is expected to go off without incident. Nevertheless, the SFA are aware that it could be a very hot dance, especially for Xhaka. National team director Pierluigi Tami already announced on Monday that he would seek talks with the captain. “Provocations from outside are always possible, you can’t control that. You have to be prepared for that,” he says. For Switzerland, however, it is “a game like any other”, said Tami. The last duels against the Serbs? “They’re old stories for us.”

And Xhaka? He will not comment before the clash. The SFA will not be sending the national team captain to any of the five press conferences in the run-up to the match. The fact that the midfielder will not make the trip to Serbia was never up for discussion, however. Nati coach Murat Yakin said the day before the game: “We know Granit. He is always focused and fully committed to his work. We are concentrating on tomorrow. Not on what happened in the past.”