Already crowned Swiss Super League champions, Basel can continue the party at St. Jakob-Park on Saturday, as they host Luzern on the final matchday.
While FCB have been celebrating for some time now, their visitors are still aiming to salvage a place in next term’s Conference League after suffering a late-season collapse.
Match preview
Back at the summit after eight years of struggle, Basel once again lead the way in Switzerland’s top flight, sitting eight points clear of second-placed Servette with one round remaining.
From the bottom of the table to the title, head coach Fabio Celestini has totally transformed FCB in just a few months, and a double triumph could await, as they will take on lower-league Biel in next month’s cup final.
However, the 21-time national champions were surprisingly hammered 6-2 at Stadion Wankdorf last time out, as great rivals Young Boys ruthlessly ended their eight-match success streak.
Nonetheless, it has still been a season to remember, and particularly for returning hero Xherdan Shaqiri, who has racked up 25 goal involvements from 19 league games this year alone – and no fewer than 38 overall.
Basel have not lost consecutive Super League games since September, so they will be intent on avoiding that fate this weekend, instead aiming to record five straight home wins for the first time since 2019.
While FCB may have won just three of their last 10 league meetings with Luzern, one came when the teams last met at St. Jakob-Park in early February; so, they will seek a repeat result in Saturday’s top-flight finale.
The pair’s most recent meeting was in March, when they played out a 1-1 draw in Lucerne, with Benie Traore‘s opening goal for Basel being cancelled out by a Stefan Knezevic strike.
This time, Luzern really need maximum points, as they sit level with Lausanne Sport and one behind Lugano heading into the final matchday – all three are vying for fourth place.
After losing 4-3 in a seven-goal thriller against Servette last week, Die Leuchten are winless in five games, leaving them outsiders to overhaul their two rivals and claim a place in Europe for next season.
Precedent suggests that Mario Frick‘s men now have just the slimmest of chances: in 2025, only Sion have a worse away record in the Super League.
So far this calendar year, Luzern have tallied just five points on the road, losing six times out of nine, so toppling the new champions in Basel presents a tall task.
Team News
Having returned to training ahead of schedule, Basel left-back Dominik Schmid could make his comeback from a head injury this week, just ahead of the cup final – potentially wearing a protective mask.
The home fans will bid farewell to long-serving midfielder Taulant Xhaka, who is retiring at the end of the current campaign, but star man Xherdan Shaqiri appears keen to carry on.
The ex-Liverpool attacker – who recently turned down the chance to reverse his international retirement – has been irreplaceable for FCB since returning, racking up 18 goals and 20 assists in the league.
Meanwhile, Thibault Klidje has posed Luzern’s main threat this term, finding the net 10 times so far; Austrian striker Adrian Grbic scored twice from the spot last week, albeit in a losing cause.
The latter will hope that is enough to earn elevation into the visitors’ starting XI, while head coach Mario Frick must make an enforced change at the back: Stefan Knezevic is suspended, joining injured pair Jesper Lofgren and Sofyan Chader on the sidelines.
Basel possible starting lineup:
Hitz; Kade, Adjetey, Vouilloz, Cisse; Avdullahu, Metinho; Shaqiri, Traore, Otele; Ajeti
Luzern possible starting lineup:
Loretz; Dorn, Beka, Freimann, Ciganiks; Winkler, Stankovic, Medja; Rrudhani; Grbic, Klidje
We say: Basel 3-1 Luzern
Entertainment is all but guaranteed, as at least five goals have been scored by either side in four of Basel’s last five Super League matches.
Luzern must flood forward in search of a win that would keep their European dreams alive, so the new Swiss champions can capitalise by clinically picking them off.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
VOTE IN THE 2024-25 SPORTS MOLE READERS’ AWARDS!
Voting is now open for the annual Sports Mole Readers’ Awards, where you can pick your player of the season, manager of the season, signing of the season and much more.
Click here to make your selections, and the winners will be announced on Monday, May 26!
