Switzerland came out on top in what turned out to be a tight encounter against Serbia, thanks to a comeback inspired by Granit Xhaka and in doing so, they became the first nation to secure a win at the 2018 World Cup finals after conceding first.
Aleksander Mitrovic opened the scoring in the fifth minute for Serbia after Dusan Tadic found him with a superb cross. The goal put Serbia in front, but Switzerland maintained control of the game, as they kept 61% of the ball in the first ten minutes.
The remainder of the first-half was somewhat even in terms of attacking plays, despite Switzerland emphasis on retaining possession.
The second-half began with Serbia looking to score right off the bat, as Mitrovic and Sergej Milinkovic-Savic linked up nicely, but ultimately failed to produce a concrete opportunity.
Shortly after the start of the second forty-five, Xhaka pounced on a rebound and sent the ball flying into the back of the net from outside the 18-yard-area, keeping his side's Round of 16 qualification hopes alive.
Both sides continued to go back and forth, but the game's finest moments came in its final minutes.
Following a succession of corners and attacking plays, Switzerland's main man Xherdan Shaqiri finally emerged with a late winner in the 90th minute as he was put through on goal and found the back of the net with a deftly executed finish before celebrating in a manner befitting of a goal of that magnitude.
Switzerland now appear likely to qualify from Group E alongside Brazil considering their final opponent in the group stage is Costa Rica, who are yet to secure a victory in the 2018 World Cup finals.
WORLD CUP - GROUP E
Serbia - 1 (Mitrovic 5')
Switzerland - 2 (Xhaka 52', Shaqiri 90')
Kaliningrad Stadium, Kaliningrad
