In Switzerland, an interesting week is on the program. At the weekend, the 23rd round of the championship takes place and during the week are the first leg of the Cup semi-finals. The largest city in Switzerland may admire two derbies within three days. GC is home-grown in the championship. Since both teams play their home games in Letzigrund, this does not change much in the starting position. Currently the Hoppers are only in seventh place in the table. Only seven points separate them from the relegation zone, but also the qualification places for the Europa League are only five points away. This GC can conclude this season still conciliatory. It looks better for FC Zurich. The promotion club is in third place with 32 points. The chances of the championship title are no longer available. The Bernese Young Boys are already 17 points ahead of them. The Zurich derby takes place at the usual Super League time and promises good odds.

Grasshoppers:

The Zurich have started badly in the second half. Only against the bottom of the table from Valais was won the game. Otherwise, Lugano and Lucerne were too strong for the Hoppers. Thus, the team of Yakin slipped to seventh place in the table. Clearly not enough for the record champion of Switzerland. In addition to football, GC also provides very good teams in various other sports. The club was founded in 1886 and is thus the oldest Zurich football club. Currently, GC lives from its glorious past. The last championship title is already 15 years back. At this time, the Hoppers still carried their home games in the Hard Tower. Due to the construction defects GC had to move to Letzigrund Stadium. A new building on the Hardturm area has been planned for years, but was delayed by various objections and recourses. A pure football stadium – in which FC Zurich would have played – was slightly rejected in 2015 by the voting population with 50.80%. Thus, there is no end in sight that GC no longer has to play their home games in Letzigrund.

In the cup, chances for a GC title are higher. The Hoppers face FC Zurich in the semi-final. Before that, the Zurich won 1-0 in the second round against Lausanne. In the quarterfinals a winner was found in Ticino only on penalties. For this defeat, the Luganesi retaliated last weekend in the championship. For GC, it would be important because of the table situation that are scored in today’s game three points. In addition, a derby success enjoys much greater prominence among the fans and would prepare the team optimally for the Cup game.

FC Zurich:

Things are going well for FC Zurich. Currently the climber is on the third place in the table. In the season 2015/16 convinced the city Zurich and did not get into the Challenge League. Nevertheless, FC Zurich won the Swiss Cup and could – despite the descent – Europa League games deny. In the second highest league you marched through and made the instant resurgence. Since the budget was not cut, the team had – in proportion to their opponents – the multiple financial resources available. Responsible for this is Ancillo Canepa. He owns 90% of the shares of Zurich and is the president of the club. This Canepa caused a stir last Tuesday: He released Uli Forte immediately. As Zurich is in third place and also a cup success is possible, this message shook the football Switzerland. The 1-1 draw against Lucerne was decisive for this decision. The president demands more spectacle and offensive football from his team. Ludovic Magnin will take over the coaching job for this plan. The former Swiss international previously coached the U21 from Zurich. He is also charged with the task of introducing many youth players to the professional team. Whether this change of coach will motivate the players before the derby has to be awaited. Certainly FC Zurich is the favorite in this Zurich derby.

PREDICTION: Both teams to score / YES @ 1.49