Sion vs Grasshopper

Underperforming Grasshopper head to the Stade de Tourbillon to take on Sion in a mid-table Switzerland Super League showdown.

A brace of morale-crushing friendly defeats to Young Boys and Servette by an aggregate score of 8-0 in the warm-up campaign are discouraging as Sion look to overcome domestic wobble. The hosts cruised to a 2-0 home win over Lausanne to close 2021 out on a high, ending a run of two consecutive league losses. Interestingly, since being held to a 1-1 home draw to Luzern in September, none of Sion’s last 11 top-flight matches have ended level (W4, L7), 55% of which featured a full-time margin of 2+ goals. But Paolo Tramezzani’s men can draw confidence from their uplift in home form, having gone from four consecutive home league outings without winning (D1, L3) to back-to-back triumphs by a two-goal margin. With four of Sion’s five goals scored across those two wins coming beyond half-time, Grasshopper should be worried about their second-half display.

However, the visitors have been equally impressive in the second 45 minutes of away action this season, registering ten out of their 14 league goals scored on the road beyond half-time. Yet, despite netting 2+ goals in each of their last four top-flight road trips, Grasshopper only won two of those fixtures (D1, L1), highlighting their defensive woes. Bringing all domestic competitions into the equation, they have only kept one clean sheet in their last nine away games, which could be a reason for concern. It is also worth mentioning that Giorgio Contini’s men have conceded at least one goal inside the first 15 minutes of play in 33.33% of their Switzerland Super League travels this season (3/9).