Basel will be looking to bounce back from a midweek disappointment when they travel to Stadion Letzigrund for a matchday three Swiss Super League encounter against Grasshopper Zurich on Sunday.
The hosts are currently in ninth place with one point after the first two matchdays, while the visitors are in sixth with three points and are starting to build some momentum after a poor start to the campaign.
Match preview
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While Grasshopper have not set the stage alight since earning promotion back to the Super League in the 2020-21 season, their year-on-year progression has been commendable, although they are some way from returning to their glory days.
They were relegated in 2018-19 and needed two seasons to get back up, but after finishing in eighth place in 2021-22 and seventh last season, they will have genuine hopes of re-establishing themselves as a top-flight regular this term.
Bruno Berner was appointed to lead the side to safety this season with the new extended relegation round format being implemented, but it has been a difficult start to the season for the new boss as his side are one of five sides that are yet to record a win this season.
While the 3-1 loss in their first match of the season to last year's runners-up Servette can be overlooked, their second match, which ended 1-1 against newly promoted Lausanne-Sport, will be a cause for concern for Berner, whose side were outplayed for large parts and had to come from behind to salvage a point.
Still, Grasshopper cannot be ruled out of this contest just yet, as they were in the upper half of the table in terms of home records last term, which included two wins over this opponent with clean sheets in both matches.
Meanwhile, Basel managed a 2-1 win in midweek against Tobol in their Conference League qualifier second leg but lost the tie 4-3 on aggregate after the Kazakh outfit secured a 3-1 lead the previous week.
Fair to say, last season was rough for Timo Schultz's side, who managed just 11 wins in 36 league matches, along with 14 draws and 11 losses, leaving them outside the top four for the first time since the 2000-01 season.
They began this season with an unexpected 2-1 loss to St Gallen in their first match but bounced back with a solid 5-2 home win over Winterthur last week, though conceding two goals to the only side that averaged less than one goal per match last season is far from ideal.
Basel took 21 of a possible 54 points in away matches last season, and after losing to St Gallen on opening day, they have now failed to win any of their last three league matches on the road on either side of the summer break.
However, with their continental cup commitments now gone, it may work as a blessing in disguise for Basel's league prospects, and with two consecutive wins and seven goals scored in the space of a week, they have already laid a solid platform to build on.
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Team News
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Berner will have three absentees coming into this match, with Nigel Lonwijk (hamstring), Meritan Shabani (muscle) and Pascal Schurpf (knee) all ruled out through injury.
The duo of Tsiy-William Ndenge and Giotto Morandi has been the highlight of the Grasshoppers side, with both players opening their account in the first two matches, and they will almost certainly line up again in this one with Amir Abrashi completing the three-man midfield.
Meanwhile, Schultz may have to make do without as many as six players, with Sergio Lopez and Taulant Xhaka the most recent to be flagged with injuries.
They will join Jonas Adjetey, Jonathan Dubasin, Marwin Hitz and Leon Avdullahu on the treatment table, with none of the aforementioned expected back for another few weeks.
Grasshopper Zurich possible starting lineup:
Hammel; Abels, Tobers, Seko, Kempter; Abrashi, Ndenge, Morandi; Carvalho, Dadashov, Corbeanu
Basel possible starting lineup:
Salvi; Lang, Comas, Van Breemen, Calafiori; Frei, Schmid, Ndoye, Burger, Kade; Augustin
We say: Grasshopper Zurich 1-2 Basel
Indeed, Basel are some way from the side that were constantly challenging for top honours in the Super League and in Europ. However, their Conference League loss in midweek may be exactly what they need to get back on track. We can see them getting an important three points in this one.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Devesh Jaganath
