After losing one of the tournament's brightest rising talents, Switzerland coach Murat Yakin was forced to redraw his plans and make major tactical adjustments, before leading his team to the World Cup quarter-finals with a thrilling 4-3 penalty shootout victory over Colombia after a grueling 0-0 draw that lasted 120 minutes.

Yakin's journey in the tournament has seen many tactical changes and surprises, but he had no choice on Tuesday but to abandon his original plan after Johan Manzambi suffered a knee injury during the final training session a day before the match. In the end, the Swiss coach proved his decision was correct.

Although Manzambi, 20, started the opening match against Qatar on the bench, he made the most of the opportunities he was given, scoring two goals against Bosnia to bring his tournament tally to three goals and two assists before facing Colombia. More importantly, he became a key element in Yakin's tactical system, giving Switzerland an effective attacking focal point that allowed them to stay compact defensively and launch counterattacks, along with his ability to hold the ball when needed.

The injury forced Yakin to abandon his original ideas for the match, and it soon became clear from the start that Switzerland would adopt a more conservative approach, with players dropping back, focusing on controlling the tempo, and launching only limited attacks.

With Ruben Vargas also remaining on the bench due to fitness concerns, Breel Embolo found himself isolated up front for most of the match against a solid Colombian defense that had conceded only one goal in the entire tournament before this encounter.

Swiss goalkeeper Gregor Kobel told reporters: 'I think it's normal for the match to go this way, given the circumstances.'

He added: 'We knew they had great physical strength, and we knew they were a very good team. The fans were clearly supporting them, so it was a tough match for us.'

Although Colombia created several chances, they lacked a striker like Embolo, a player capable of occupying defenders, drawing them out, and creating space for his teammates.

While statistics showed Colombia created 15 chances, only three of them were on target.

Kobel said: 'We knew we would go through periods where we had to defend a lot and rely on our mental strength, and I think we did that excellently.'

He added: 'It's clear that the absence of some players increased the challenge, but I think everyone performed very well, and we executed the plan as we wanted.'