The Young Boys have come back with vehemence in the title fight. The struggling leader deservedly beat the Grasshoppers 3-0 at home and was able to take advantage of pursuer Servette’s slip-up on Wednesday. The Bernese are now 4 points ahead of their first pursuer.
GC was a welcome opponent for “Yellow-Black”. The record champions, who have not won since mid-February, invited the home team, which had changed six positions, to score goals twice in the starting phase with their own errors:
- 6. Minute: GC defender Joshua Laws heads straight into the feet of Meschack Elia. The YB attacker pulls away from the edge of the penalty area and hits a precise low shot into the far corner to give Bern an early lead.
- 18. Minute: Again the guests are unable to clarify things sufficiently. The ball lands indirectly at Silvere Ganvoula after a corner. The Congolese, who last scored in December 2023, made it 2-0 from close range.
Just three minutes later, GC keeper Justin Hammel had to fish the ball out of the goal again. The 3-0 was preceded by a burst of energy from Saidy Janko. The Bernese right-back let Laws get out on the sideline and fueled his way into the penalty area. There he found the free-standing Joël Monteiro, who just had to push in.
Game flattens out
The Grasshoppers, who had equalized after Giotto Morandi’s first goal (7th minute), were out of control after the 3-0 defeat. The Zurich team, who had only scored 2 goals in the last 5 games, obviously lacked faith in a miraculous turnaround.
The Young Boys, who had not scored a goal for over 180 minutes before the game, were brimming with enthusiasm before the half-time whistle. With a little more luck, Elia (34th) and twice Ganvoula (38th/44th) could have scored three more goals for the overwhelmed guests.
After the break, things calmed down noticeably. GC tried to react, but remained without any penetration on the offensive. Bruno Berner’s team can no longer reach the championship round mathematically. In its current form, GC is playing against relegation anyway.
This is how it goes
On Sunday both teams will be challenged abroad. YB travels to St. Gallen in eastern Switzerland, the Grasshoppers are guests of Yverdon-Sport.