Vancouver, July 8 (IANS) Ruben Vargas said he had yet to fully process Switzerland’s progress to the World Cup quarter-finals after converting the decisive penalty in Wednesday’s shootout against Colombia. The winger, who had been a fitness doubt before the match, said he was grateful simply to have been able to play in the round-of-16 encounter.

“I don’t think I’ve fully realized it yet; I’m thankful for this moment. I wasn’t even sure if I would be able to play,” the 27-year-old said after the match as quoted by Xinhua.

Vargas sent Colombia goalkeeper Camilo Vargas the wrong way to seal a 4-3 shootout win after the teams were locked at 0-0 after 120 minutes in Vancouver. Switzerland will face reigning champion Argentina in Kansas City on July 11, marking the European team’s first World Cup quarterfinal appearance since 1954.

“We somehow managed to give it a try, and looking back now, I’m just grateful and happy that I was able to help the team,” he said. “The team worked incredibly hard and fought for more than 120 minutes. It wasn’t easy to play football here today. And now we’ve made history. It simply feels amazing.”

Switzerland manager Murat Yakin praised the impact of second-half substitute Djibril Sow, who he said had helped his team regain control in midfield and neutralize Colombia’s attacking threat.

“At the start, we needed experience. We needed the right mentality,then, in the second half, we made a substitution that gave us even more control, especially in possession. And as the game went on, we were also able to bring on the players we wanted for the penalty shootout,” Yakin said after the match.

“You always have a plan. When it works out in the end, it’s all the more satisfying. Of course, we also had a bit of luck today, and that’s part of football,” he added.

–IANS

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