Swiss clock ticks

Paris: Haris Seferovic starred with a hat-trick as Switzerland staged a sensational comeback to thrash Belgium 5-2 in Lucerne on Sunday and qualify for the Nations League semifinals in dramatic fashion.

Thorgan Hazard’s early double left Switzerland needing to win by two goals to qualify from Group A2 but the hosts quickly fought back, with Ricardo Rodriguez’s penalty and Seferovic’s first two goals seeing them into a 3-2 half-time lead.

Nico Elvedi nodded home a Xherdan Shaqiri cross in the 62nd minute, and Vladimir Petkovic’s men sealed a stunning win when Seferovic completed his treble late on.

“I want to congratulate each player, there was a big mental reaction, the players never gave up, they always believed. They played with will, intelligence and with their heads,” said Swiss coach Petkovic.

Switzerland will play at the finals in June next year, alongside European champions Portugal and England, with the final spot going to either France or the Netherlands.

Roberto Martinez’s men saw their six-match unbeaten run since reaching the World Cup semi-finals brought to an shuddering halt.

“We forgot to defend well, we gave Switzerland the opportunity to get back in World game,” said Spanish coach Martinez.

“We had a lot of excitement, we really wanted to finish top of the group. The disappointment will make us more focused when the (Euro 2020) qualification starts,” he added.

Thorgan Hazard set the tone for the game in only the second minute as dreadful defending by Swiss centre-back Elvedi allowed him to slot home.

The 25-year-old winger continued his excellent recent form with a magnificent individual strike in the 17th minute.

He carried the ball forwards at pace before hammering a low drive into the bottom corner from the edge of the box.

He has scored 12 goals for club and country this season.

Austria victorious

Earlier on Sunday, Austria beat Northern Ireland 2-1 in a dead rubber in Belfast that Marko Arnautovic described as a “fight”.

Northern Ireland had already been relegated from Group B3, while Austria were guaranteed to finish second.

“We can be proud of the win. We wanted to come here, to finish well with a win and we did that,” West Ham forward Arnautovic told Sky Sports.

“He (Northern Ireland centre-back Gareth McAuley) tried to choke me, he tried to fight with me, I don’t know why,” he added.