Switzerland captain Granit Xhaka admits error in fake vaccination case, skips Nations League games
Switzerland captain Granit Xhaka acknowledged errors Monday and withdrew from the national team squad after facing scrutiny for allegedly using fake documents during the COVID-19 pandemic. Switzerland’s most capped player, with 152 games for the national team, will not join the squad ahead of four games in the Nations League. Swiss soccer federation president Peter Knäbel said in a statement it…
BERN, Switzerland (AP) — Switzerland national team captain Granit Xhaka admitted to a mistake on Monday and stepped away from the squad amid allegations of using counterfeit documents for vaccination during the COVID-19 pandemic. The 33-year-old Xhaka is under suspicion of receiving a forged vaccination certificate from a doctor who is currently under investigation by prosecutors in Lucerne, according to recent Swiss media reports.
"It was a mistake. I apologize," Xhaka stated in a recent post on his Instagram account, adding that he is willing to cooperate with the authorities. As Switzerland's most capped player with 152 appearances for the national team, Xhaka will not participate in four upcoming games in the Nations League. Swiss soccer federation president Peter Knäbel announced in a statement that they appreciated Xhaka's willingness to take responsibility and fully investigate the situation.
However, they also agreed that it is in the best interest of the team to play these matches without him. The World Cup quarterfinalists are scheduled to play against North Macedonia and Scotland before hosting Slovenia and North Macedonia in their Nations League second-tier group.
Written by urgent.news from Yahoo Sports's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
This story
This is one outlet's version. Read the fullest account.
