33 days to go…
We’re counting down to the FIFA World Cup 2026™ by showcasing a golazo from the global finals each day.
Xherdan Shaqiri
Honduras v Switzerland
Brazil 2014 | Group E
Arena Amazonia, Manaus
Lionel Messi had already jinked in from the right and bagged two bangers. Now it was the turn of ‘The Alpine Messi’.
Switzerland went into their final first-phase game needing to better Ecuador’s result to go through. “We need to get off to the fast start,” stressed Xherdan Shaqiri. “The longer the match goes on, the more difficult will become.”
Fortunately for the Swiss, it only stayed goalless for minutes. ‘The Powercube’, as he was also known, exercised his powerlifter’s upper-body strength to shrug off Juan Carlos Garcia and smashed an unstoppable strike into the top corner.
It helped Shaqiri score the 50th hat-trick in World Cup history. That helped Switzerland reach the last 16. ‘The Alpine Messi’ against the original Messi was set for Sao Paulo.
Watch: Xherdan Shaqiri goal v Honduras | All the angles
Highlights: Honduras 0-3 Switzerland
The treble club
Watch: Mesmerising Messi sizzles against the Swiss
