Switzerland cruise past Algeria but did they produce the World Cup’s worst miss?

Switzerland march on at this World Cup.They recorded their third straight victory at the tournament to cruise into the last 16, defeating Algeria 2-0 in Vancouver with the minimum of fuss. Their win would have been even more convincing had Fabian Rieder scored an open goal late on, but it did not affect the outcome and they will now face either Colombia or Ghana on Tuesday.Algeria started brightly but ultimately fell way short as their attempt to progress to the last 16 for the first time at a World Cup was frustrated again.We analyse the major talking points.Was this the worst miss of the World Cup so far?Fabian Rieder was able to breathe a sigh of relief.A contender for the miss of the tournament in the closing stages of the game, when he failed to get a clean connection on the ball with the goal at his mercy just a few yards out, did not come at a cost for him and for Switzerland. There has been something stealthy about Switzerland’s progress to the round of 16. They conceded a late equaliser in Qatar in their opening game, but since then they have put a run together, beating Bosnia and Herzegovina (4-1), Canada (2-1) and now Algeria (2-0). The performances and results have not been of a type to turn heads, but it is the kind of understated competence that has come to define Switzerland’s performances on the international stage in recent years.They always seem like a team with a glass ceiling, though. In the European Championship finals, it has usually been in the quarter-finals. In the World Cup, it has usually been in the round of 16. This time, they will face Colombia or Ghana in the round of 16, with the likelihood that Argentina would be lying in wait should Switzerland reach the quarter-finals for the first time since 1954.They have quality in some areas — most strikingly Johan Manzambi — but they still look like a last-16 team at worst and a quarter-final team at best. That is not a bad place to be.Oliver KayDid Manzambi produce the assist of the tournament?There isn’t an award for assist of the World Cup, but Johan Manzambi would be in the running if there was.Running is the operative word because Swiss starlet Manzambi, one of the breakout stars of the tournament, picked up the ball just inside the Algeria half and just ran.