Shock in Switzerland: Lugano concedes 5 unanswered goals on the field of St. Gallen

8 November 2026, 22:30·63·Sport

The 13th round of the Swiss Championship saw the most unexpected and sensational result of the season. Lugano, which has been leading the league table with confidence, visited St. Gallen and suffered a heavy 0-5 defeat.

This match was recorded as the first defeat for Lugano in the current season. The fate of the match changed drastically as early as the 11th minute due to the dismissal of the visitors' striker.

Match tragedy: 11th-minute red card and 5 unanswered goals

In the match held at the Kybunpark stadium, everything went wrong for the visitors very early on:

Ajeti's dismissal: Just 11 minutes into the match, Lugano striker Albian Ajeti received a straight red card for a foul, leaving his team with 10 men;
First-half rout: Taking advantage of their numerical superiority, the hosts increased the pressure and scored three goals before the break — Okoroji (33), Geubbels (35), and Görtler (45+2) brought the score to 3-0;
Second-half conclusion: In the 66th minute, Geubbels completed his brace, and in the 84th minute, Cisse scored the fifth goal, completely dismantling the league leaders — 5-0.

Behruz Karimov joined the match from the bench

Talented young defender Behruz Karimov, who was recently called up to the Uzbekistan national team for the November training camp, was brought on to help his team in this match:

The coaching staff brought the Uzbek legionnaire off the bench in the 65th minute, replacing Zanotti, in an attempt to fill the gaps in the defensive line.

Match report and lineups

Swiss Championship. 13th round
St. Gallen — Lugano 5:0
November 8, Kybunpark stadium
Goals: Okoroji (33), Geubbels (35, 66), Görtler (45+2), Cisse (84).
Dismissal: Ajeti (11, Lugano).
Lugano: von Ballmoos (Gebhardt, 26), Papadopoulos, Mai, Bichsel, Zanotti (KARIMOV, 65), Cimignani, Grgic, Bislimi (Steffen, 80), Marques (Alioski, 65), dos Santos (Berens, 46), Ajeti.

Situation in the tournament table: Leadership still maintained

Despite the heavy and painful defeat, Lugano remained at the top thanks to the solid cushion they built at the start of the season:

Lugano — 32 points: The team maintains 1st place and is still 6 points ahead of its closest pursuer, Young Boys;
St. Gallen — 22 points: Having routed the leaders, the hosts increased their point tally to 22, moving up to 4th place in the tournament table.