Swiss are on a roll claims Kuhn

Switzerland coach Jakob Kuhn makes a sign to his players during their Euro 2004 match against Croatia. Kuhn believes Switzerland are ready to shock France and England in their forthcoming Group B matches of the Euro 2004 tournament in Portugal.

France and England beware - Switzerland are set to cause a major upset if their coach Jakob Kuhn is to be believed.

The 61-year-old may have been wearing rose-tinted glasses but he was right to believe his side had won a moral victory as they held on for a 0-0 draw with Croatia in their opening Group B clash at Euro 2004 on Sunday despite being reduced to 10 men when Johann Vogel was sent off in the 50th minute.

Indeed it was the Swiss rather than the Croats - who were a pale shadow of the side that reached the 1998 World Cup semi-finals - who threatened to score and put a brighter hue on a match that was most memorable for the eight yellow cards and Vogel's red that were issued by referee Lucilio Batista.

The point for the Swiss and Croats took on a new significance after England were defeated 2-1 by France in the day's other match.

The Swiss are England's next opponents, on Thursday, when David Beckham's side really need to win if they are to have a chance of progressing to the quarter-finals.

"Vogel was obviously a great loss but it is a great result for us," said Kuhn.

"This is a step forward for Switzerland and I can't wait for our next match," added Kuhn, who became the first Swiss national to hold the coach's post since 1989 when he took charge in 2001.

Swiss striker Alex Frei said that while the Swiss - who had topped a qualifying group which included Russia and Ireland - hadn't been at their best they could approach the England clash with some optimism.

"We may not have seen the best of Swiss football but it is the Euro after all," said the 24-year-old whose exploits for French championship side Rennes last season has seen him attract interest from several top European clubs.

"Against England we need to pull off something special but we need to be more aggressive and be willing to run ourselves into the ground."

Swiss defender Patrick Mueller admitted they could have played better.

"We finished well despite the heat and could have won but now we have to beat either France or England," said Mueller, who plays for three-time French champions Lyon.

"We need to get some rest and recuperate a bit because it was very hot out there."

The Croats had little to show for some pretty approach play and their marksmanship reflected the fact that none of their players have scored more than six goals - Niko Kovac and Ivica Olic being the two on that mark - in international football.

Croatian coach Otto Baric preferred to hype up the Swiss qualities.

"We should have taken advantage of the situation," said the former Austria handler.

"I am not satisfied with the result but mark my words neither of the other teams (England and France) will have it easy against a very good opponent such as Switzerland," he added.