Switzerland salvage vital point

A spectacular equaliser four minutes from time from Baykal Kulaksizoglu earned Switzerland a dramatic draw in an exhilarating UEFA European Under-21 Championship Group B game in Mainz.

Stunning volley
Trailing 2-1 at the Bruchwegstadion, André Meier's side looked to be on their way out for the competition. However, Philippe Senderos's burst from defence gave Johan Vonlanthen the chance to cross and, although the ball was partially cleared, it fell perfectly for Baykal on the edge of the penalty area and the midfield player rescued a point with a spectacular volley.

New faces
Both sides made changes after defeats in their first matches, with Miguel Garcia, Custódio and Danny coming into the Portugal side in place of Mário Sérgio, Raúl Meireles and Carlos Martins. Switzerland coach Bernard Challandes, meanwhile, introduced Rijat Shala, Alain Nef, Baykal Kulaksizoglu, Fabrizio Zambrella and David Degan to his starting lineup.

Lourenço miss
Initially the personnel reshuffle seemed to have benefited Portugal more and José Pratas Romão's team might have taken the lead after just three minutes. A deep left-wing cross found Lourenço in space at the far post, but he side-footed against the foot of a post before firing the rebound wide.

Physical approach
Bruno Alves and Jorge Ribeiro both forced Switzerland goalkeeper Marco Wölfli into action, but genuine goalscoring opportunities were few and far between as a physical Swiss side sought to hustle and harry their opponents at every turn.

Imortant intervention
As the half wore on, both sides might have broken the deadlock. Nine minutes before the interval Zambrella burst dynamically down the right to cross but, just as Volanthen looked to have rounded Moreira, the Portugal goalkeeper stuck out a hand to palm the ball away.

Chances wasted
At the other end, Miguel Garcia's dribble into the area created another chance for Lourenço, again, though, the striker's aim was wayward as he dragged wide. Zambrella and Volanthen then linked up again, but this time the forward missed his kick as he prepared to shoot.

Cool finish
The breakthrough finally arrived 12 minutes into the second half, Switzerland taking the lead with a well-worked goal. Rochat's pass found Zambrella, whose perfect through-ball put Volanthen clear. This time the striker makes no mistake, side-footing beyond Moreira.

Penalty equaliser
The lead lasted only nine minutes, however, as Portuguese substitute Carlitos was brought down by Rocaht inside the penalty area and another replacement, Carlos Martins, made no mistake, sending Wölfli the wrong way from the spot.

Glancing header
Five minutes later Portugal were in front as Jorge Ribeiro swang in a left-wing cross and Hugo Almeida got ahead of two Swiss defenders to glance a header beyond a helplessly exposed Wölfli.

Red card
Switzerland threw everything forward as they sought an equaliser, and their hopes were boosted when Portugal captain Ricardo Costa was dismissed for violent conduct following a tussle with Nef eight minutes from time. However, Portugal seemed to set to hold out, but Baykal had other ideas.