2008–09 FC Basel season

FC Basel

2008–09 season
Chairman	Gisela Oeri
Manager	Christian Gross
Swiss Super League	3rd
Swiss Cup	Semi-finals
UEFA Champions League	Group stage
Top goalscorer	League: Scott Chipperfield (12) All: Eren Derdiyok (14)
Highest home attendance	37,500 vs Barcelona (22 October 2008)
Lowest home attendance	15,730 vs Aarau (4 December 2008)

The 2008–09 FC Basel season began off with various pre-season matches against Swiss lower league teams, as well as against German Bundesliga, Ukrainian Vyscha Liha and Polish Ekstraklasa clubs. Basel's objectives for the year were to regain their Swiss Super League and Swiss Cup titles, as well as qualify for the UEFA Champions League.

Overview

After last season, where Basel dominated on the domestic front, winning both the Swiss Super League and Swiss Cup, and reaching the last 32 of the UEFA Cup. They then had the opportunity to qualify for the Champions League. To prepare for the 2008–09 season, FCB added defenders Behrang Safari from Malmö FF and David Abraham from Gimnàstic de Tarragona and midfielders Jurgen Gjasula and Marcos Gelabert from FC St. Gallen.

In the other direction, fans' favourite Daniel Majstorović left the club for AEK Athens, while Kōji Nakata returned to Japan with Kashima Antlers; Vratislav Lokvenc and David Degen's respective loan deals were not re-newed. Prior to the start of the domestic season, Ivan Ergić resigned from the position as club captain and Franco Costanzo was unveiled as the new captain one day before the season began.

The campaign

Domestic league

Basel were the defending champions and the club's priority aim for this season was to win the domestic league championship again. Basel played their opening game of the season in Bern on 18 July 2008 against Young Boys, which they won 2–1 through goals by substitutes Marko Perović and Benjamin Huggel after Eudis had put the home side ahead. With four wins and one draw, FC Aarau had the best start to the season and were in first place in the table for the first five match days. Basel then took the lead in the table after a 4–1 away win against Zürich. In the following weeks, Basel were able to maintain their lead, before Zürich took first place for the first time that season thanks to the better goal difference. On the 15th matchday, the top match between FCB and FCZ was played and ended with a 1–1 draw and so Basel could maintain its championship lead. On the next match day, however, Basel lost 2–0 against Xamax and since Zürich beat FC Sion 1–0, there was another change to first place. In the last game of the year there was an unexpected result when the bottom of the table Luzern beat Basel 5–1. As a result of this, Zürich were four points ahead of Basel and ten points ahead of third-placed YB winter champions.

In the first round after the winter break, the table leaders played 2–2 in the Zürich city derby against Grasshopper Club, but were still able to build their lead over Basel to five points, as the table runner-up lost 3–2 away against YB. However, this lead was reduced to two points on matchday 21 after FCB won the top game against FCZ 2–1. On the 23rd matchday, Zürich were long behind in the game against Luzern, but equalized five minutes before the end and were able to turn the game into a 3–1 win. In the following round, the YB were defeated 1–3 in Vaduz and thus lost the connection to the top of the table. On the 25th matchday, FCB took the lead in the table. Zürich lost 4–2 in Bern, while Basel beat Vaduz 5–0 at home in the St. Jakob-Park. On the next match day, FCZ regained the top of the table after a 2–1 win against Aarau and because FCB only played 1–1 in Bellinzona. FCB won 3–2 in against Xamax and benefited from the fact that FCT could only draw against Sion and thus FCB took the lead in the table. On matchday 29, the leaders FCB did not get beyond a draw against Bellinzona and because FCZ won their game in Aarau 3–0, they were able to move up to first place. On matchday 32, none of the first three teams won their game: FCZ did not get more than 1–1 against Luzern, but was able to extend their lead to four points because FCB lost 3–1 in Aarau, contrary to all expectations. The following round, the top match between FCZ and FCB took place, which Basel won 3-1 and thus they moved within one point to Zürich. Basel lost 4-1 GC, Zürich won 1–0 in Bellinzona and won the championship. The play-off slot went to Luzern, who lost 5–2 in Bern, while Sion won 5–1 in Vaduz and thus were able to secure their place in the league.

Swiss Cup

The 2008–09 Swiss Cup was the 84th season of Switzerland's annual cup competition. It began on 20 September with the first games of Round 1 and ended on 20 May 2009 with the Final held at Stade de Suisse, Bern. The winners earned a place in the play-off round of the UEFA Europa League. FC Basel were the defending champions. Nine Super League teams (FC Vaduz are from Liechtenstein and thus play in the Liechtenstein Cup 2008–09) and all sixteen Challenge League clubs entered this year's competition, as well as thirteen teams from 1. Liga and 26 teams from lower leagues. Teams from both the Super League and Challenge League were seeded in the first round and the teams from the Super League were seeded in the second round. In the first three rounds, the home advantage was granted to the team from the lower league, if applicable.

Schötz

Basel were drawn against third tier FC Schötz. Basel head coach Christian Gross gave most of his regular rest, including goalkeeper and captain Franco Costanzo and played with a reserve team. Marco Streller returned into the team after a groin operation. Basel controlled the game, but in the first half did not create many chances and so the score was goalless at half-time. Basel played with more speed and higher pressure after the break. They created chances but it wasn't until the 79th minute before they scored that Orhan Mustafi pushed in his shot from the 5 yard box after a cross from Eduardo Rubio. Schötz then reacted and had three chances to equalise, but two shots went well wide and reserve keeper Oliver Stöckli saved the other. Basel's 1–0 win was hard earned.

Bulle

In the second round Basel were drawn against third tier FC Bulle. The game at the Stade de Bouleyres was played on 17 October in front of 4,600 spectators. Basel started the game concentrated and put the hosts under pressure from the beginning. After a few chances, in the 14th minute Marko Perović put in a hard cross so close to the near post that goalkeeper Chassot couldn't help but knock the ball over the goal line. After taking the lead, Basel kept up the pressure and Eduardo Rubio doubled up two minutes later. FCB then controlled the game without trying too hard, the outsiders tried to react and created a few chances. Suddenly this worked out and Barnabo pulled a goal back in the 27th minute after a solo dribbling and good long-range shot. Then, in the second half Basel increased the tempo. Reto Zanni on the right wing with a good cross to Marco Streller, who pushed the ball in, played 57 minutes. Bulle showed a reaction, but their goal a few minutes later was an off-side effort and disallowed. Basel had a few more chances and, in the overtime, Jurgen Gjasula scored the last goal of the match to make it 4–1 for the favourites.

Thun

In round three, played on 22 November, FCB was drawn against second tier FC Thun, who hosted the game in the Stadion Lachen in front of 3,550 spectators. Basel took control of the game from the start, and youngster Eren Derdiyok put the guests one goal in advance after 22 minutes and he doubled this up eight minutes later. After the hour Derdiyok completed his hat-trick. Soon after the third goal head coach Christian Gross substituted his goal scorer out, replacing him with Orhan Mustafi. Gross also brought in Jurgen Gjasula, who scored the final goal of the game to give the visitors a 4–0 victory.

Zürich

The quarter-finals were played in Spring 2009. In the round of the last eight FCZ were matched at home in the Letzigrund against FCB on Wednesday 18 March. The match saw both teams have a good start, they neutralized each other before the penalty box. Zürich took control of the match before half time. In the 23rd minute good positional play by Adrian Nikçi, who outwitted the defense, but then only hit the post. Basel created the better chances after the break. In the 48th minute Andrea Guatelli safely parried a shot from 15 meters from Ivan Ergić. In the 51st minute a header from Marco Streller was also held by the keeper. After a foul on Streller in the 66th minute referee Cyril Zimmermann awarded a penalty for Basel, which Benjamin Huggel converted on the top right-hand corner. Basel controlled the game, leaving FCZ with only one further goal chance. After a foul by Huggel with 5 minutes left to play, Almen Abdi took the free kick from about 18 meters, centrally in front of the goal, but he shoots far over it. Then, free kick for Basel from a good central position, Carlitos places the free kick on the crossbar. Game over, one goal was enough, 1–0 for FCB.

Young Boys

The semi-final between Young Boys and FCB took place on Thursday 16 April. Both teams started enthusiastically in the with 31,120 spectators sold-out Stade de Suisse. After a few minutes, Thomas Häberli had a possibility with his head, but he was offside. YB put on the pressure mainly on the right through Carlos Varela and Christian Schwegler. However, the decisive last pass was always imprecise, so that no great chances arose. Before the break, two scenes occurred in front of both goals. Scott Chipperfields shot was thwarted by Marco Wölfli with a good save (38). On the other side, Häberli was held back briefly, referee Bertolini decided on penalty. But Basel's goalkeeper and captain Franco Costanzo saved the penalty kicked by Mario Raimondi (45). The course of the game hardly changed after the break. YB had a lot of possession, but the guests were also often in front of the goal. In the 30-minute "extra time", YB looked fresher, but no goals fell. It came to a penalty shoot-out. Here YB goalie Marco Wölfli became the hero. He saved Huggel, David Abraham and Jurgen Gjasula's penalties. Gilles Yapi Yapo, Felix Bastians and Marco Schneuwly all scored for YB and they reached the Cup final.

Conclusion

Basel's aim for the Swiss Cup was to retain the title and this was not achieved, but the qualification for the semi-final was a good result.

Champions League

IFK Göteborg

Basel entered the Champions League in the Second Qualifying Round and were drawn against IFK Göteborg of Sweden. The first leg was on 30 July 2008 at Ullevi. After the first 90 minutes it was an advantage for FC Basel 1893 because the Swiss champions scored an away goal in holding IFK Göteborg to a 1–1 draw in Sweden. Benjamin Huggel scored for Basel, breaking the deadlock after 26 minutes, as he struck with a back-post header following Jürgen Gjasula's corner. However, the lead was only short as Jakob Johansson set up Thomas Olsson to restore parity just six minutes later. IFK were then played forwards but could not find a second goal. Likewise Basel had nothing to show for their late pressure as David Abraham, Gjasula and Huggel failed to net the ball with their chances, the end score remained 1–1.

Return match

The second leg took place on 6 August at St. Jakob-Park. Göteborg started into the game fastest and having come close to scoring within a few seconds, they soon had the goal that they needed to remain in the fixture as in the 19th minute Pontus Wernbloom finished off a fast counterattack. This shook Basel to life and Benjamin Huggel, the man who put them ahead last week in Gothenburg, managed the same feat again as he headed in a Jürgen Gjasula corner. The only player who was added to Basel's starting lineup compared to the first leg was Valentin Stocker and he nearly scored the home team's second, but Göteborg's goalkeeper Kim Christensen was able to smother the effort. Although after the interval Basel maintained the pressure, Göteborg scored the second goal and this again came following a quickly played break. It was finished off by Robin Söder after Basel goalkeeper and captain Franco Costanzo could only knock the first attempt to the side. Now Basel required two goals to overturn Göteborg's away-goals advantage. They achieved the first with 19 minutes left to play as Scott Chipperfield stretched himself to put home an Eren Derdiyok cross. The home supporters sensed the chance as Basel were awarded a penalty for a handball with just six minutes left to play. Ivan Ergić made no mistakes with the spot kick and it was he who, in the added injury time, out played two Göteborg defenders to settle the match 4–2.

Vitória de Guimarães

Basel then faced Vitória SC of the Portuguese Liga in the third qualifying round at Estádio D. Afonso Henriques in Guimarães. Having already played five league games and the first two qualifiers, Basel had quickly found their rhythm and attempted to force the pace from the beginning, both Valentin Stocker and Ivan Ergić went close to goal in the opening minutes of the first half. Stocker had had the first chance at goal after eight minutes. With a neat pass coming from Basel's Portuguese midfielder Carlitos who set up the chance for his team-mate, but Stocker fired left footed just beyond the post. Ergić also had a good chance, but this also went wide. Basel played neatly and waited for counterattack opportunities, this although they nearly got caught out twice in quick succession. First Marquinho volleyed just off-target after 30 minutes and minutes later he sent a header towards the goal but this drew a comfortable save from goalkeeper Franco Constanzo. Basel pushed forward. Stocker had a good chance. Carlitos also tried his luck with a good shot from long range and Ergić produced a header after a corner, which was shortly before half-time. As the second half got underway, Eren Derdiyok came close to scoring for Basel with a left-foot shot. Stocker also had another good chance. Then, at the other end, a number of Guimarães strikers were unable to finish off a right-wing cross and eventually the ball was cleared. The home team were unable to outwit the stubborn and hard Basel defence, not even after coach Manuel Cajuda brought in two new strikers in an attempt to strengthen the attacking force in the second half. The game ended goalless.

Return match

The second leg was played on 27 August at St. Jakob-Park. Basel immediately took the initiative and pushed forward. As an early fine passing move unlocked the Guimarães defence, Ivan Ergić's final pass found Valentin Stocker, who put the hosts one up after 11 minutes. However, the Portuguese team were soon back on level terms. Not even four minutes later they achieved a potentially decisive away goal as Fajardo put home from the penalty spot, following François Marque's foul on João Alves. Basel created good opportunities through Marcos Gelabert and Eren Derdiyok and even if they had more possession and even if they were the stronger attacking team for the rest of the half, their efforts were all in vain because the hard-working Guimarães defence held tight. After the restart Manuel Cajuda's team came out as the more adventurous side. First Yves Desmarets was well-placed and he sent a hard shot narrowly wide of goalkeeper Franco Costanzo's left-hand post. The Basel defence caused further concern just a few moments and let João Alves free and he directed a dangerous header on target. Realising their danger, Basel then woke up and increased the pressure in their game on Guimarães. Stocker's shot was close and Derdiyok's shot went wide. Their forcing tempo then paid off as Stocker pushed a pass to his striker partner Derdiyok and he fired his shot low, beyond Nilson. Because they were a goal behind, Guimarães were forced to do the pressing, but as they equalised for a second time, through substitute Roberto Calmon Félix with just three minutes left, he was ruled offside by referee Pieter Vink and his linesman. FCB held on to their 2–1 lead and secured their qualification to the tournament's group stages.

Group stage

Basel's hopes for their international season dropped somewhat because they were drawn into a strong Group C alongside Barcelona, Sporting CP and Shakhtar Donetsk. Barça were one of the favorites to win the trophy, and Basel had bad memories of the Sporting team, who had knocked them out of the 2007–08 UEFA Cup knockout stage this year in February. As third opponents Shakhtar had won the Ukrainian double (league and Cup) the previous season. Nevethless coach Christian Gross stated that remaining in Europe over the winter break was their aim. This meant at least third position in the group, which would see then continue in the 2008–09 UEFA Cup.

Shakhtar

Basel played their opening game of the group stage at St. Jakob-Park on 16 September against Shakhtar. Being urged on by the loud vocal chants from the supporters massed behind Captain Franco Costanzo's goal, Basel pressed forward promisingly from the start. Striker Eren Derdiyok, returning first time after suffering a thigh injury, almost turned the early pressure positive, but he hit an early header just wide. Shakhtar's coach Mircea Lucescu had promised his team would go out to play for the victory. After Basel's early enthusiasm had worn off, the visitors became the more menacing and Jádson, one of five Brazilians in the starting eleven, proved a constant concern for the Basel defence. On 16 minutes the playmaker rushed down the right and supplied a cross, which Luiz Adriano narrowly failed to turn goalwards. Although it was the quick passing moves which threatened to open up the home defence more than once, it was to be that the set-pieces that would ultimately prove their undoing. Fernandinho sent one long-range effort fly over the bar. Basel central defender François Marque with a clumsy challenge on Luiz Adriano about thirty metres out, allowed the deep-lying playmaker Fernandinho another chance. His kick was still rising upwards as it passed keeper Costanzo for the first goal. Basel's game was only occasional as Shakhtar dominated the first half. They were rewarded for the efforts with the second goal in the added time of the half. Right back Reto Zanni committed a handball and Jádson struck a hard free-kick which was missed by everybody as it arced in to the right-hand corner of Costanzo's net. Basel coach Christian Gross reacted to the team's problems at half-time and took out Derdiyok and Valentin Stocker. Their replacements Orhan Mustafi and Eduardo made an immediate impact. After just four minutes in the second half Mustafi forced Shakhtar keeper Andriy Pyatov to his first save with an angled drive. Then Carlitos's smart pass gave Eduardo his first chance, but he shot wide of Pyatov's right-hand post. Because of their two-goal lead, Shakhtar controlled the game and were less adventurous than they had been before. Yet the Ukrainian champions nearly hit a third after 66 minutes. Basel left-back Ronny Hodel was overwhelmed by the speed of the break and Luiz Adriano ran clear of him into the open space and passed to Brandão in the box. Costanzo saved the Brazilian's first effort and then reacted superbly to fiercely-struck follow-up from Vyacheslav Shevchuk on to a post. David Abraham scored a late consolation goal for the home team.

Sporting CP

Sporting Clube de Portugal were the opponents on Matchday 2, played in the Estádio José Alvalade on 1 October. The home team started well, played forwards and Derlei proved he was a dangerous striker. But Basel were soon in the game, Jürgen Gjasula made space for himself, but his early shot but failed to be dangerous for Rui Patrício. Not long afterwards Tonel was forced to make a desperate clearance so that Marco Streller did not have a clear run at goal. The hosts were putting more pressure on, but Basel had the first clear-cut chance threw defender David Abraham. The Argentinian centre-back was given plenty of time and space to take on Streller's pass, but his shot went wide. Derlei had the next chance but failed to control the ball. Sporting had two better chances before half-time, through Leandro Romagnoli and Fábio Rochemback. After 49 minutes Derlei almost broke the deadlock, but he headed João Moutinho's acrobatic overhead cross against the post. But ten minutes after half time the Basel defenders beat themselves with a bizarre own-goal. Abraham attempted to clear under pressure struck the ball hard, but it hit Reto Zanni and looped back behind goalkeeper Franco Costanzo into the net. Two minutes later Romagnoli almost increased the lead, but the keeper fisted his powerful shot into the out. Basel reacted, but Benjamin Huggel was denied the equaliser as Rui Patrício made a sprawling save. The goalie was then forced by Gjasula's free-kick to tip the ball over the top. In the last minutes Sporting exploited the extra space that the forward moving visitors were leaving behind them. First Derlei was unlucky with a header, again being denied by the post. He then had an effort ruled out for offside by Italian referee Nicola Rizzoli and his linesman, but he found his efforts rewarded as he netted the 86th minute. Despite defending well and causing a few scares at the other end of the park, Basel were defeated 2–0.

Barcelona

In advance to game on matchday 3 at St. Jakob-Park against Barcelona on 22 October, it was suggested that Basel were the more ambitious side, because head coach Christian Gross lined up both Marco Streller and Eren Derdiyok in the attack. Gross had said he had trimmed his defence and would not like to see his side go one down in the opening stage. On the other side Josep Guardiola put his stars Samuel Eto'o, Andrés Iniesta and Thierry Henry on the bench. These suggestions were soon disproved as Lionel Messi played a double pass with Dani Alves and ran on to the Brazilian's chipped return pass to tip the ball in from the edge of the six-yard box. The home side recovered from that crushing blow, but suddenly found themselves two goals behind. Xavi passed to Sergio Busquets on the right and the midfielder drove the ball between goalkeeper Franco Costanzo’s legs. The Basel keeper then denied Xavi's effort a few minutes later. But Barça continued their pressing and scored as Bojan Krkić created himself space and hammered his shot into the lower left corner after 22 minutes. The Basel defence blocked a further Krkić shot and keeper Costanzo reacted well as Alves followed-up. Basel could have been four down before the first half-hour had been played. Head coach Gross took out Eduardo Rubio after the break, he brought Valentin Stocker, but within 60 seconds of the restart Costanzo was beaten again as Krkić finished off a quick played counterattack with his hard shot. Only two minutes later, Alexander Hleb and Messi combined to supply Xavi who netted the fifth. At the other end, Streller eventually had a shot at Víctor Valdés's goal as he outran Carles Puyol and hammered a right foot shot, but it was swept away. Basel created another few chances through Derdiyok, Stocker and Streller but couldn't realise and lost 0–5.

Barcelona

The return game against Barcelona in the Camp Nou was on 4 November in front of 49,000 spectators. Home team coach Josep Guardiola left Lionel Messi, Xavi and Samuel Eto'o on the bench and, therefore, much was expected from Andrés Iniesta and, luckily for Barça he was on form on the day, ready to run and with a good eye. He linked-up well with Thierry Henry and created two good chances for the Frenchman, the first of which was arched narrowly beyond keeper Franco Costanzo's left-hand post. Then Iniesta himself had the next chance and he produced a low drive, but the keeper matched the chance. Costanzo and central defender François Marque both played a good game. Barça missed another opportunity to take the lead before half-time, as Sylvinho delivered a free-kick which Henry met with a header in towards the top corner of the goal but Costanzo matched this chance too. Again, after the break the Argentinian keeper confirmed his credits as Henry passed the ball into space in front of Bojan Krkić, who was able to run clear, but Costanzo was able to block the chance with his feet. Guardiola was unhappy with his team and so brought on Xavi and Messi and they rewarded him within two minutes. Messi caught a loose ball and burst forward, played a one-two with Henry and slotted the ball home into the bottom corner of the net. This was Messi's fourth Champions League goal in as many matches. Xavi also made an impact, he forced yet another save from Costanzo with a free-kick. Iniesta was forced out with an injury to his right thigh in the 67th minute. Gerard Piqué also played two good set-pieces, but instead the second goal of the match came at the other end. Carlitos swang in a right-wing cross directly to Eren Derdiyok who smashed a volley past Victor Valdés to the 1–1 end score.

Shakhtar

The return game against Shakhtar Donetsk in the stadium RSK Olimpiyskyi was on 26 November. Due to the absence of centre-back Dmytro Chyhrynskyi and right-winger Ilsinho through injury, plus suspended striker Brandão, home coach Mircea Lucescu had to make changes in his team. Luiz Adriano played as middle striker and he was aided by Willian, Jádson and Fernandinho. That latter pair combined well and they nearly opened the scoring during the first five minutes. First, Jadson swept a ball wide, then Fernandinho's attempt was pushed over the bar by goalkeeper and captain Franco Costanzo. Basel had trouble starting into the game, finding it difficult to get a hold on the pitch, which was soggy and heavy following the heavy rain earlier in the day. Striker Eren Derdiyok didn't see much of the ball in the early minutes. Nevertheless, Costanzo had to remain concentrated and he dealt well following a fierce free-kick by Darijo Srna. Willian then took a shot that went wide. After about half-hour, Basel seemed to have sorted their problems out and were into the game. Then Shakhtar struck. Tomáš Hübschman sent in a cross from the left, which Oleksiy Gai controlled the ball and played back to Jadson, who rushed into the box to push the ball home. Shakhtar goalkeeper Andriy Pyatov saved an Eduardo effort just before half-time. Both teams started fast into the second half, Valentin Stocker had his shot blocked on the line, and at the other end Fernandinho also had his effort cleared off the line. Five minutes into the second half, Willian doubled the score, coming from the left-hand touchline, swerved around several defenders before arching the ball inside the far post, despite Costanzo's desperate dive. The visitors replied and pushed and worried the Shakhtar defence, but suddenly were three down. A quick played counterattack, William sent Srna down the left and his cross was pushed home at the far post by Jadson. The Brazilian completed his hat-trick seven minutes later, Willian crossed from the left Jadson finished off. Ukrainian international Yevhen Seleznyov with a left-footed shot from just inside the box in the 75th minute gave the game its final 50 score line.

Sporting CP

Matchday 6 in the St. Jakob-Park on 9 December against Sporting CP was Basel's last game in their journey through European competition for this season. The home team had the greater share of possession in the opening. Sporting striker Derlei had the first chance, though, with an early shot across goal at the end of a swift counterattack. While Basel continued to play neatly, but that without carrying out much threat to the Sporting goal, the speed with which the visitors could turn defence into attack was menacing. A measured ball found Yannick Djaló racing clear, and though his cross was met by a powerful header from the again unmarked Derlei, Franco Costanzo parried this. João Moutinho then flashed a shot just over, and Sporting finally made the breakthrough on 19 minutes. Marat Izmailov's low cross from the right hand side was turned in from point-blank range by the quickly onrushing Djaló. The early goal and torrential rain that fell during the entire match failed to dampen the enthusiasm of the Basel fans, who could have been celebrating only a third goal in the section for their side when Fábio Rochemback lost possession to present Benjamin Huggel with a shooting chance, but the midfielder sent a fierce shot just wide of the goal. Ivan Ergić did find the target soon after, but his drive lacked sufficient power to trouble goalkeeper Tiago, while Djaló may have scored a second, had his stand foot not slipped after he had cleverly created space inside the box. The half-time introduction of Valentin Stocker gave Basel increased power down the left wing and, seconds after the restart, an early cross from him led to Marco Streller shooting wide of the goal. Huggel again tested goalkeeper Tiago as the hosts sought for the equaliser. Sporting were clearly content to let the waves of pressure break on their back four, and play their counterattacks with pace. Djaló tried a number of stepovers, as he tried to tease center back Beg Ferati on the left, but despite getting round the Basel defender, his cross saw the diminutive Moutinho comfortably outmuscled by Basel's other center back François Marque. Stocker's direct approach won a corner, which he took himself, but the high soaring Ergić headed over the goal. However, Djaló miscued his shot when Marco Caneira's cross found him with lots of space just inside the penalty box. Fabien Frei eventually brought a save out of Tiago with a low drive 16 minutes from time, while Stocker forced the goalkeeper into two stops in quick succession. The final score 0–1 meant the end of Basel's journey through the European competition for this season.

Club

Management

Position	Staff
Manager	Christian Gross
Assistant manager	Fritz Schmid until 13 January 2009
Conditioning Coach	Marco Walker from 16 January 2009
Fitness Coach	Thomas Grüter
Fitness Coach	Romain Crevoisier
Youth Team Coach	Patrick Rahmen
Youth Team Co-Coach	Sandro Kamber

Last updated: 17 May 2008
Source:

Kit

Supplier: Nike
Sponsor(s): Novartis

Home

Away

Source: Official Site

Other information

Chairman	Mrs Gisela Oeri
Vice Chairman	Mr Bernhard Heusler
Ground (capacity and dimensions)	St. Jakob-Park (42,500 / 120x80 m)

Source: Official Site

Players

First team squad

The following is the list of the Basel first team squad. It also includes players that were in the squad the day the season started on 18 July 2008, but subsequently left the club after that date.

As of 30 June 2009, accounting for official transfers: Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
1	GK	ARG	Franco Costanzo (Captain)
3	DF	SUI	Ronny Hodel
4	DF	SUI	Michel Morganella
6	MF	ARG	Marcos Gelabert
7	MF	GER	Jurgen Gjasula
8	MF	SUI	Benjamin Huggel (Vice-captain)
9	FW	SUI	Marco Streller
10	MF	SRB	Marko Perović
11	MF	AUS	Scott Chipperfield
14	MF	SUI	Valentin Stocker
15	FW	ARG	Federico Almerares
16	MF	SUI	Fabian Frei
17	FW	CHI	Eduardo Rubio
19	DF	ARG	David Abraham

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
20	DF	SWE	Behrang Safari
21	DF	FRA	François Marque
22	MF	SRB	Ivan Ergić
23	FW	BRA	Eduardo
25	GK	SUI	Jayson Leutwiler
26	MF	SUI	Daniel Unal
27	GK	SUI	Yann Sommer
28	DF	SUI	Beg Ferati
29	FW	SUI	Orhan Mustafi
30	MF	POR	Carlitos
31	FW	SUI	Eren Derdiyok
32	DF	SUI	Reto Zanni (Vice-captain)
33	DF	TUR	Serkan Şahin
35	GK	SUI	Oliver Stöckli

Multiple nationalities

• 1 Franco Costanzo
• 7 Jurgen Gjasula
• 11 Scott Chipperfield
• 13 Daniel Unal
• 15 Federico Almerares
• 17 Eduardo Rubio
• 20 Behrang Safari
• 22 Ivan Ergić
• 28 Beg Ferati
• 29 Orhan Mustafi
• 31 Eren Derdiyok
• 33 Serkan Şahin

Summer transfers

In

5	MF	GER	Jurgen Gjasula (from FC St. Gallen – free transfer)
6	MF	ARG	Marcos Gelabert (from FC St. Gallen – 644.000 SFr)
10	MF	SRB	Marko Perović (from Red Star Belgrade – 1.288.000 SFr)
13	MF	SUI	Daniel Unal (from AS Roma)
15	FW	ARG	Federico Almerares (from River Plate)
17	FW	CHI	Eduardo Rubio (loan from Cruz Azul with buy-out option)
17	DF	SUI	Patrik Baumann (loan return from FC Concordia Basel)
19	DF	ARG	David Abraham (from Gimnàstic de Tarragona)
20	DF	SWE	Behrang Safari (from Malmö FF – 644.000 SFr)
25	FW	MKD	Orhan Mustafi (from FC Zürich – free transfer)
26	MF	SUI	Pascal Schürpf (from Basel U-21)
33	MF	SUI	Samet Gündüz (from Basel U-21)
35	GK	SUI	Oliver Stöckli (free transfer)

Out

5	DF	SWE	Daniel Majstorović (to AEK Athens)
6	DF	JPN	Kōji Nakata (to Kashima Antlers)
7	MF	SUI	David Degen (loan return to Borussia Mönchengladbach)
12	MF	SEN	Papa Malick Ba (contract not re-newed)
15	MF	LIE	Franz Burgmeier (Mutual Consent)
18	GK	LBR	Louis Crayton (to D.C. United)
19	FW	CZE	Vratislav Lokvenc (loan return to Red Bull Salzburg)
29	MF	SUI	Simone Grippo (to Chievo)

Out on loan

24	MF	SUI	Cabral (on loan to Sevilla)
33	MF	SUI	Samet Gündüz (on loan to FC Wil)
--	DF	SUI	Dominik Ritter (on loan to Concordia Basel)
--	DF	SUI	Patrik Baumann (on loan to Concordia Basel)
--	GK	SUI	Yann Sommer (on loan to FC Vaduz)

Winter transfers

In

27	GK	SUI	Yann Sommer (from FC Vaduz – loan return)
33	DF	TUR	Serkan Şahin (from Basel U-21)
-	MF	SUI	Xherdan Shaqiri (from Basel U-21)

Out

4

DF

SUI

Michel Morganella (to Palermo)

Out on loan

27	MF	SUI	Pascal Schürpf (on loan to Concordia Basel)
33	MF	SUI	Samet Gündüz (on loan to Concordia Basel)
--	DF	SUI	Sabri Boumelaha (on loan to Concordia Basel)

Starting 11

No.	Pos.	Nat.	Name	MS	Notes
1	GK		Costanzo	28
20	LB		Safari	34
21	CB		Marque	22
19	CB		Abraham	33
32	RB		Zanni	32
8	DM		Huggel	33
14	LW		Stocker	32
11	CM		Chipperfield	24
22	CM		Ergić	30
30	RW		Carlitos	22
31	FW		Derdiyok	25

Last updated: 20 November 2008
Source: Squad stats and Start formations.
Only competitive matches.
Using the most used start formation.
Ordered by position on pitch (from back right to front left).

Costanzo (C)

Marque

Abraham

Safari

Zanni

Huggel

Stocker

Carlitos

Chipperfield

Ergić

Derdiyok

Overall

Basel participated in the following major competitions: the Swiss Super League, the Swiss Cup and the UEFA Champions League.

Competition	Started round	Final position / round	First match	Last match
Swiss Super League	—	3rd	18 July 2008	29 May 2009
Swiss Cup	Round 1	Semi-final	20 September 2008	13 April 2009
UEFA Champions League	Second qualifying round	2008–09 UEFA Champions League Group stage	30 July 2008	9 December 2008

Source: Competitions

Results and fixtures

Friendly matches

Pre-season friendlies

Basel v Lugano

24 June 2008 Pre-season	Basel	3 – 1	Lugano	San Gian, Celerina
17:30	Ergić 19' (1:0) Burgmeier 21' (2:0) Carlitos 81' (3:1)	Summary	59' (2:1) Rocca	Attendance: 720 Referee: Patrick Collet (Riom/GR)

Wil v Basel

28 June 2008 Pre-season	Wil	1 – 2	Basel	Bergholz, Wil
17:30	Tsimba 82' (1:)	Summary	33' (0:1) Ergić 90' (1:2) Boumelaha	Attendance: 900 Referee: Marco Speranda (Hergiswil)

BSC Old Boys v Basel

2 July 2008 Pre-season	BSC Old Boys	1 – 3	Basel	Stadion Schützenmatte, Basel
19:00	Boukaakiou 64' (1:2)	Summary	44' (0:1) Carlitos 57' (0:2) Ergić 75' (1:3) Mustafi	Attendance: 2,218 Referee: Sascha Amhof

Basel v Shakhtar Donetsk

5 July 2008 Pre-season	Basel	2 – 3	Shakhtar Donetsk	Stadion Schützenmatte, Basel
18:00	Stocker 32' (1:2) Ergić 36' (2:2)	Summary	15' (pen. 0:1) Fernandinho 27' (0:2) Hladkyy 53' (2:3) Seleznyov	Attendance: 1,500 Referee: Pascal Erlachner

Uhrencup

The Uhrencup is a club football tournament, held annually in Grenchen. It is Europe's most traditional club football tournament.

Basel v Legia Warsaw

10 July 2008 Uhrencup Round 1	Basel	6 – 1	Legia Warsaw	Stadion Brühl, Grenchen
20:45	Gjasula 15' (1:0) Marque  21' Carlitos 44' (2:0) Carlitos 56' (3:0) Schürpf 67' (4:1) Mustafi 85' (5:1) Mustafi 89' (6:1)	Summary	19' Borysiuk 66' (pen. 3:1) Iwański	Attendance: 6,791 Referee: Nicole Petignat

Basel v Borussia Dortmund

8 July 2008 Uhrencup Round 2	Basel	2 – 2	Borussia Dortmund	Stadion Brühl, Grenchen
19:30	Santana 19' (o.g. 1:0) Gjasula 65' (2:1)	Summary	34' (1:1) Kehl 85' (2:2) Valdez	Attendance: 8,094 Referee: Claudio Circhetta

Pre-season/First half of season friendlies

FC Oberdorf v Basel

15 July 2008 Pre-season	FC Oberdorf	1 – 7	Basel	Stadion z’Hof, Oberdorf
18:30	Wahl 87' (pen. 1:6)	Summary	29' (0:1) Derdiyok 36' (0:2) Carlitos 45' (0:3) Derdiyok 70' (0:4) Stocker 78' (0:5) Mustafi 86' (0:6) Mustafi 91' (1:7) Gjasula	Attendance: 2,300 Referee: Reto Lanfranchi (Reinach)

SV Muttenz v Basel

9 September 2008 Mid-season	SV Muttenz	0 – 5	Basel	Sportplatz Margelacker, Muttenz
19:30		Summary	1' (0:1) Abraham 26' (0:2) Gjasula 51' (0:3) Eduardo 81' (0:4) Almerares 87' (0:5) Almerares	Attendance: 1,220 Referee: Daniel Wermelinger

Concordia Basel v Basel

14 October 2008 Mid-season	Concordia Basel	3 – 3	Basel	Stadion Rankhof, Basel
14:00	Bieli 59' (1:2) Mathys 83' (2:2) Schweizer 92' (3:2)	Summary	51' (0:1) Mustafi 57' (0:2) Mustafi 93' (3:3) Almerares	Attendance: 400 Referee: Jan Fluri (Ettingen)

Winter break/Second half of season friendlies

Concordia Basel v Basel

15 January 2009 Winter break	Concordia Basel	4 – 3	Basel	Stadion Schützenmatte, Basel
12:00	Bieli 39' (1:1) Tcheutchoua 59' (2:3) Bieli 62' (pen. 3:3) Mathys 76' (4:3)	Summary	31' (0:1) Gelabert 49' (1:2) Mustafi 50' (1:3) Chipperfield	Attendance: 200 Referee: Alain Bieri (Solothurn)

Basel v Solothurn

17 January 2009 Winter break	Basel	3 – 2	Solothurn	Stadion Schützenmatte, Basel
14:30	Ferati 50' (1:2) Derdiyok 54' (2:2) Almerares 68' (3:2)	Summary	31' (0:1) da Costa 49' (0:2) Kalina	Attendance: 500 Referee: Reto Walker

Basel v Tianjin Teda

22 January 2009 Training camp	Basel	4 – 0	Tianjin Teda	Sportplatz La Manga, La Manga
16:00	F. Frei 18' (1:0) F. Frei 53' (2:0) Derdiyok 62' (3:0) Stocker 88' (4:0)  86' Gelabert	Summary		Attendance: 50 Referee: Francisco Gomez Liarte (Murcia)

Basel v Wisła Kraków

25 January 2009 Training camp	Basel	1 – 1	Wisła Kraków	Municipal Manolo Maciá, Santa Pola
16:00	Derdiyok 19' (1:0)	Summary	88' (1:1) Cléber	Attendance: 150 Referee: Francisco Gomez Liarte

Basel v Dynamo Moscow

28 January 2009 Training camp	Basel	3 – 1	Dynamo Moscow	Sportplatz La Manga, La Manga
14:30	Stocker 4' (1:0) Streller 17' (2:0) Streller 50' (3:0)	Summary	64' (3:1) Kerzhakov	Attendance: 100 Referee: Luis Davales Sanchez (Murcia)

Neuchâtel Xamax v Basel

31 January 2009 Winter break	Neuchâtel Xamax	2 – 0	Basel	Stade de la Maladière, Neuchâtel
15:00	Ovarec 35' (1:0) Kroupi  36' Niçoise 83' (2:0)	Summary	36' Abraham	Attendance: 800 Referee: Jérôme Laperrière (Bagnes)

Basel v Locarno

1 February 2009 Winter break	Basel	4 – 1	Locarno	Stadion Schützenmatte, Basel
13:00	Abraham  6' Gjasula 22' (1:1) Carlitos 36' (2:1) Huggel 53' (3:1) Ergić 66' (4:1)	Summary	7' (0:1) Kuhl  64' Toprak	Attendance: 400 Referee: Claudio Circhetta (Muttenz)

Basel v Wohlen

10 February 2009 Mid-season	Basel	3 – 3	Wohlen	Stadion Rankhof, Basel
16:00	Streller 41' (1:2) Ergić 45' (2:3) Almerares 47' (3:3)	Summary	22' (0:1) Barthlomé 30' (0:2) Keller 44' (1:3) Diethelm	Attendance: 400 Referee: Adrien Jaccottet (Basel)

Basel v Sochaux

17 February 2009 Mid-season	Basel	3 – 1	Sochaux	Youth Campus Basel, Münchenstein
15:30	Chipperfield 4' (1:0) Almerares 21' (2:0) Almerares 31' (3:0)	Summary	45' (3:1) Tulasne	Attendance: 100 Referee: Alain Bieri (Bern)

Basel v Winterthur

24 February 2009 Mid-season	Basel	2 – 0	Winterthur	Youth Campus Basel, Münchenstein
15:00	Almerares 50' (1:0) Eduardo 71' (2:0)	Summary		Attendance: 300 Referee: Adrien Jaccottet (Basel)

Basel v Basel U-21

10 March 2009 Mid-season	Basel	2 – 2	Basel U-21	Youth Campus Basel, Münchenstein
15:30	Mustafi 48' (1:1) Almerares 51' (2:1)	Summary	20' (0:1) Weisskopf 85' (2:2) Osmani	Referee: Adrien Jaccottet

Basel v La Chaux-de-Fonds

31 March 2009 Mid-season	Basel	4 – 1	La Chaux-de-Fonds	Youth Campus Basel, Münchenstein
16:00	Streller 13' (1:0) Carlitos 34' (2:0) Zoua 68' (3:0) Zoua 85' (4:0)	Summary		Attendance: 200 Referee: Adrien Jaccottet (Basel)

Swiss Super League

Main article: 2008–09 Swiss Super League

First half of season

Young Boys v Basel

18 July 2008 Round 1	Young Boys	1 – 2	Basel	Wankdorf, Bern
20:15	Eudis 19' (1:0) Varela  66' Ghezal  87'	Summary	10' F. Frei 69' (1:1) Perović 87' (1:2) Huggel	Attendance: 23,250 Referee: Massimo Busacca

Basel v Grasshopper

23 July 2008 Round 2	Basel	1 – 0	Grasshopper	St. Jakob-Park, Basel
19:45	Abraham  42' Perović 46' (1:0) Zanni  56' Gjasula  92'	Summary	44' Bobadilla  74' Salatić	Attendance: 23,915 Referee: Cyril Zimmermann (Münsingen)

Basel v Bellinzona

26 July 2008 Round 3	Basel	2 – 0	Bellinzona	St. Jakob-Park, Basel
19:45	Chipperfield 8' (1:0) Ergić 75' (2:0) Stocker  81'	Summary	53' La Rocca  59' Wahab  74' Bernardet	Attendance: 19,829 Referee: Daniel Wermelinger

Sion v Basel

2 August 2008 Round 4	Sion	2 – 0	Basel	Stade Tourbillon, Sion
17:45	Beto 37' (1:0) Adeshina 45' (2:0) Alioui  50' Crettenand  64'	Summary	16' Zanni  26' Rubio  45' Perović  76' Marque	Attendance: 14,800 Referee: Stefan Messner

Basel v Vaduz

9 August 2008 Round 5	Basel	4 – 0	Vaduz	St. Jakob-Park, Basel
19:45	Zanni 16' (1:0) Abraham  38' Mustafi 56' (2:0) Mustafi 63' (3:0) Rubio 78' (4:0)	Summary	53' Cerrone	Attendance: 19,962 Referee: Alain Bieri

Zürich v Basel

17 August 2008 Round 6	Zürich	1 – 4	Basel	Letzigrund, Zürich
16:00	Abdi 41' (1:2) Abdi  43'	Summary	13' (0:1) Stocker 21' (0:2) Chipperfield 54' (1:3) Carlitos  71' Gelabert  84' Morganella 90+1' (1:4) Carlitos	Attendance: 14,200 Referee: Sascha Kever

Basel v Xamax

23 August 2008 Round 7	Basel	4 – 3	Xamax	St. Jakob-Park, Basel
17:45	Huggel 27' (1:0) Derdiyok 27' (2:0) Derdiyok 33' (3:0) Carlitos 43' (4:2)	Summary	8' Rossi  21' Besle  24' Sulaimani 35' (3:1) Coly 41' (3:2) Coly 50' (4:3) Rossi  78' Rak  87' Furios	Attendance: 20,321 Referee: René Rogalla

Aarau v Basel

30 August 2008 Round 8	Aarau	0 – 2	Basel	Stadion Brügglifeld, Aarau
17:45		Summary	29' Rubio 45' Chipperfield 63' Gelabert  86' Safari	Attendance: 9,250 Referee: Jérôme Laperrière

Basel v Luzern

13 September 2008 Round 9	Basel	2 – 0	Luzern	St. Jakob-Park, Basel
17:45	Huggel 16' (1:0) Chipperfield 84' (2:0)	Summary	15' Diarra  32' Seoane	Attendance: 20,627 Referee: Cyril Zimmermann (Münsingen)

Basel v Young Boys

27 September 2008 Round 10	Basel	1 – 2	Young Boys	St. Jakob-Park, Basel
17:45	Costanzo  38' Abraham  59' Huggel  61' Gelabert 79' (1:2)	Summary	32' Bastians  43' Bastians  45' Regazzoni  59' Varela 70' (0:2) Häberli  79' Häberli  87' Kulaksızoğlu	Attendance: 24,246 Referee: Sascha Kever

Grasshopper v Basel

5 October 2008 Round 11	Grasshopper	1 – 1	Basel	Letzigrund, Zürich
16:00	Bobadilla  3' Cabanas 15' (1:0)	https://www.fcb-archiv.ch/saison/spiele?command=detail&id=13059 Summary]	11' Ferati  28' Zanni 46' (1:1) Rubio  64' Derdiyok	Attendance: 12,800 Referee: Massimo Busacca

Bellinzona v Basel

26 October 2008 Round 12	Bellinzona	2 – 3	Basel	Stadio Comunale Bellinzona, Bellinzona
16:00	Lustrinelli 12' (1:0) Costanzo 50' (o.g. 2:0) Sermeter  54' La Rocca  83'	Summary	27' Huggel 54' (2:1) Streller 56' (2:2) Perović  80' Marque 90+3' (2:3) Huggel	Attendance: 4,120 Referee: Bruno Grossen

Basel v Sion

30 October 2008 Round 13	Basel	3 – 0	Sion	St. Jakob-Park, Basel
19:45	Perović 9' (1:0) Huggel 45' (pen. 2:0) Gelabert  61' Stocker 63' (3:0) Marque  64'	Summary	45' El Hadary	Attendance: 16,215 Referee: Massimo Busacca

Vaduz v Basel

9 November 2008 Round 14	Vaduz	0 – 2	Basel	Rheinpark Stadion, Vaduz
16:00	Ritzberger  27'	Summary	66' F. Frei  73' Marque 75' (0:1) Derdiyok  82' Abraham  90' Stocker 90+2' (0:2) Derdiyok	Attendance: 4,720 Referee: René Rogalla

Basel v Zürich

16 November 2008 Round 15	Basel	1 – 1	Zürich	St. Jakob-Park, Basel
14:15	Gelabert  9' Huggel 15' (pen. 1:0) Ferati  39' F. Frei  72'	Summary	51' (1:1) Hassli  52' Hassli  72' Aegerter  82' Heinz Barmettler	Attendance: 30,149 Referee: Massimo Busacca

Xamax v Basel

30 November 2008 Round 16	Xamax	2 – 0	Basel	Stade de la Maladière, Neuchâtel
16:00	Taljevic 34' (pen. 1:0) Zanni 58' (o.g. 2:0) Hodžić  65' Nuzzolo  78' Coly 82' Niasse  20'  84'	Summary	33' Costanzo  70' Huggel  76' Abraham	Attendance: 5,200 Referee: Nicole Petignat

Basel v Aarau

4 December 2008 Round 17	Basel	3 – 1	Aarau	St. Jakob-Park, Basel
19:45	Ergić 3' (1:0) Perović 49' (2:1) F. Frei 67' (3:1)	Summary	27' Lang 44' (1:1) Rogério	Attendance: 15,730 Referee: René Rogalla

Luzern v Basel

14 December 2008 Round 18	Luzern	5 – 1	Basel	Stadion Allmend, Luzern
14:45	Frimpong 15' (1:0) Ferreira  19' Frimpong 33' (2:1) Ferreira 40' (3:1) Paiva 70' (4:1) Paiva 74' (5:1)	Summary	17' Marque 32' (1:1) F. Frei  55' Morganella	Attendance: 7,626 Referee: Sascha Kever

Second half of season

Young Boys v Basel

6 February 2009 Round 19	Young Boys	3 – 2	Basel	Wankdorf, Bern
17:45	Ghezal 49' (1:0) Raimondi 60' (pen. 2:0) Häberli 88' (3:2)	Summary	36' Zanni  43' Abraham 64' (2:1) Streller 70' (2:2) Derdiyok  75' Huggel	Attendance: 19,705 Referee: Carlo Bertolini

Basel v Grasshopper Club

15 February 2009 Round 20	Basel	0 – 0	Grasshopper Club	St. Jakob-Park, Basel
16:00	Safari  38'	Summary	40' Lulić  53' Vallori  70' Salatić  90+2' Jakupović	Attendance: 20,328 Referee: Jérôme Laperrière (Bagnes)

Basel v Zürich

22 February 2009 Round 21	Basel	2 – 1	Zürich	St. Jakob-Park, Basel
16:00	Gjasula  31' Gjasula 55' (1:1) Zanni  73'  77' Chipperfield 78' (1:2)	Summary	11' Rochat 38' (0:1) Hassli  31'  64' Stahel	Attendance: 21,811 Referee: Jérôme Laperrière (Bagnes)

Luzern v Basel

1 March 2009 Round 22	Luzern	1 – 2	Basel	Stadion Allmend Luzern
16:00	Paiva 33' (1:1) R. Schwegler  55' Chiumiento  64' Frimpong  68'	Summary	22' (0:1) Gjasula  29' Stocker  81' Streller 90+2' (1:2) Chipperfield	Attendance: 10,154 Referee: Sascha Kever

Basel v Aarau

7 March 2009 Round 23	Basel	3 – 1	Aarau	St. Jakob-Park, Basel
17:45	Gjasula  69' Huggel 77' (pen. 1:1) Rapisarda 82' (o.g. 1:2) Stocker  64' Stocker 85' (1:3)	Summary	26' (1:0) Bengondo	Attendance: 17,526 Referee: Nikolaj Hänni

Sion v Basel

14 March 2009 Round 24	Sion	0 – 4	Basel	Stade Tourbillon, Sion
17:45	Obradović  33'	Summary	33' Gjasula 41' (0:1) Mustafi 45' (0:2) Chipperfield  68' Zanni 80' (0:3) Mustafi 82' (0:4) Perović	Attendance: 11,800 Referee: Massimo Busacca

Basel v Vaduz

21 March 2009 Round 25	Basel	5 – 0	Vaduz	St. Jakob-Park, Basel
17:45	Chipperfield 8' (1:0), 28' (3:0), 54' (4:0) Streller 18' (2:0) Huggel  57' Derdiyok 70' (5:0)	Summary	28'  57'  65' Thordarson  89' Nickenig	Attendance: 20,117 Referee: Bruno Grossen

Bellinzona v Basel

5 April 2009 Round 26	Bellinzona	1 – 1	Basel	Stadio Comunale Bellinzona, Bellinzona
16:00	La Rocca 40' (1:0) F. Feltscher  82'  90'	Summary	45' (1:1) Stocker  54' Streller	Attendance: 4,677 Referee: Jérôme Laperrière (Bagnes)

Basel v Xamax

9 April 2009 Round 27	Basel	3 – 0	Xamax	St. Jakob-Park, Basel
19:45	Chipperfield 13' (1:0) Chipperfield 66' (2:0) Huggel  74' Stocker 90' (3:0)	Summary	5' Rodrigo  24' Chihab	Attendance: 21,678 Referee: Alain Bieri (Solothurn)

Xamax v Basel

19 April 2009 Round 28	Xamax	2 – 3	Basel	Stade de la Maladière, Neuchâtel
16:00	Brown  36' Besle 47' (1:2) Taljevic 49' (2:2) Chihab  55'	Summary	24' (0:1) Perović 35' (0:2) Streller 64' (2:3) Derdiyok  65' Huggel	Attendance: 6,931 Referee: René Rogalla

Basel v Bellinzona

22 April 2009 Round 29	Basel	1 – 1	Bellinzona	St. Jakob-Park, Basel
19:45	Streller 33' (1:0)	Summary	42' Diarra  61' Mehmeti 76' (1:1) Conti	Attendance: 19,033 Referee: Daniel Wermelinger

Vaduz v Basel

26 April 2009 Round 30	Vaduz	0 – 1	Basel	Rheinpark Stadion, Vaduz
16:00	Polverino  13' Sadjo  27' Ritzberger  65' Rudan  85' Galbi  90'	Summary	17' (0:1) Huggel  90' Huggel	Attendance: 3,215 Referee: Alain Bieri (Solothurn)

Basel v Sion

2 May 2009 Round 31	Basel	2 – 2	Sion	St. Jakob-Park, Basel
17:45	Zanni  28' Huggel 74' (1:0) Bühler 77' (o.g. 2:0) Costanzo  90'	Summary	21' Obradović  29' Nwaneri  31' Bühler 78' (2:1) Saborío 81' (2:2) Domínguez	Attendance: 21,277 Referee: Carlo Bertolini

Aarau v Basel

9 May 2009 Round 32	Aarau	3 – 1	Basel	Stadion Brügglifeld, Aarau
17:45	Marazzi 23' (1:0) Bastida 38' (2:0) Paulinho 40' Bengondo 61' (3:1) Ianu  63'	(Report)	38' Frei 42' (2:1) Huggel  72' Safari  78' Streller	Attendance: 7,100 Referee: Cyril Zimmermann

Basel v Luzern

12 May 2009 Round 33	Basel	2 – 0	Luzern	St. Jakob-Park, Basel
19:45	Huggel  36' Perović  42' Zanni 59' (1:0) Perović 70' (2:0)	(Report)		Attendance: 19,051 Referee: Nikolaj Hänni

Zürich v Basel

17 May 2009 Round 34	Zürich	1 – 3	Basel	Letzigrund, Zürich
16:00	Tihinen  36' Djuric 42' (1:1) Hassli  69' Aegerter  77' Chikhaoui  90+1'	(Report)	37' (0:1) Gelabert 71' Streller  76' Streller  90' Derdiyok 90+3' Derdiyok	Attendance: 23,333 Referee: Massimo Busacca

Grasshopper Club v Basel

24 May 2009 Round 35	Grasshopper Club	4 – 1	Basel	Letzigrund, Zürich
16:15	Dos Santos 40' (1:1) Lulić 45' (2:1) Zárate  45' Linz 54' (3:1) Schultz 84' (4:1)	(Summary)	36' (0:1) Derdiyok  47' F. Frei  53' Abraham	Attendance: 9,300 Referee: Stéphan Studer

Basel v Young Boys

29 May 2009 Round 36	Basel	0 – 3	Young Boys	St. Jakob-Park, Basel
20:15	Abraham  40' Ergić  57'	(Summary)	50' (0:1) Baykal  63' Ghezal 73' (0:2) D. Degen 76' (0:3) Häberli	Attendance: 27,526 Referee: Sascha Kever

League table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation
1	Zürich (C)	36	24	7	5	80	36	+44	79	Swiss champions Qualification to Champions League third qualifying round
2	Young Boys	36	22	7	7	85	46	+39	73	Qualification to Europa League third qualifying round
3	Basel	36	22	6	8	72	44	+28	72	Qualification to Europa League second qualifying round
4	Grasshopper	36	12	14	10	57	48	+9	50
5	Aarau	36	11	11	14	35	51	−16	44
6	Bellinzona	36	11	10	15	44	51	−7	43
7	Neuchâtel Xamax	36	10	10	16	50	57	−7	40
8	Sion	36	9	10	17	44	60	−16	37	Swiss Cup winners Qualification to Europa League play-off round
9	Luzern (O)	36	9	8	19	45	62	−17	35	Continue to relegation play-off
10	Vaduz (R)	36	5	7	24	28	85	−57	22	Relegation to Swiss Challenge League

Source: rsssf
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions; (O) Play-off winners; (R) Relegated
Notes:

Swiss Cup 2008–09

for main article, see Swiss Cup 2008–09

Schötz v Basel

20 September 2008 Round 1	Schötz	0 – 1	Basel	Sportplatz Wissenhusen, Schötz
18:00		Summary	79' (0:1) Mustafi	Attendance: 4,150 Referee: Daniel Wermelinger

Bulle v Basel

17 October 2008 Round 2	Bulle	1 – 4	Basel	Stade de Bouleyres, Bulle
20:00	Barnabo 27' (1:2)	Summary	14' (o0:1) Perović 16' (0:2)  42' Rubio 57' (1:3) Streller 90' (1:4) Gjasula	Attendance: 4,600 Referee: Bruno Grossen

Thun v Basel

22 November 2008 Round 3	Thun	0 – 4	Basel	Stadion Lachen, Thun
18:00	Galli  26'	Summary	22' (0:1) Derdiyok 29' (0:2) Derdiyok 60' (0:3) Derdiyok  80' Safari 90' (0:4) Gjasula	Attendance: 3,550 Referee: Carlo Bertolini

Zürich v Basel

18 March 2009 Quarter-final	Zürich	0 – 1	Basel	Letzigrund, Zürich
20:15	Rochat  44' Okonkwo  72' Abdi  83'	Summary	34' Ergić 67' (0:1) Huggel	Attendance: 16,200 Referee: Cyril Zimmermann (Münsingen)

Young Boys v Basel

16 April 2009 Semi-final	Young Boys	0 – 0 (3–2 p)	Basel	Stade de Suisse, Bern
20:15	Portillo  23' Varela  73' Hochstrasser  78'	Summary	37' Abraham  120+1' Stocker	Attendance: 31,120 Referee: Carlo Bertolini
	Penalties
	Yapi Hochstrasser Bastians Schneuwly		Huggel Ergić Abraham Chipperfield Gjasula

UEFA Champions League

Main article: 2008–09 UEFA Champions League

Second qualifying round

Main article: 2008–09 UEFA Champions League qualifying rounds

IFK Göteborg v Basel

30 July 2008 1st Leg	IFK Göteborg	1 – 1	Basel	Ullevi, Gothenburg
20:15 CET	Wernbloom  25' Olsson 32' (1:1)	UEFA summary FCB summary	26' (0:1) Huggel  50' Abraham  68' Carlitos  82' Safari	Attendance: 10,914 Referee: Paolo Dondarini (Italy)

Basel v IFK Göteborg

6 August 2008 2nd Leg	Basel	4 – 2 (5 – 3 agg.)	IFK Göteborg	St. Jakob-Park, Basel
20:15 CET	Huggel 27' (1:1) Chipperfield 71' (2:2) Marque  79' Ergić 84' (pen. 3:2) Ergić 90+4' (4:4)	Report FCB summary	5' Wernbloom 19' (0:1) Wernbloom 52' (1:2) Söder  55' Olsson  90' Erikson	Attendance: 18,846 Referee: Charles Richmond (Scotland)

Third qualifying round

Vitória de Guimarães v Basel

13 August 2008 1st Leg	Vitória de Guimarães	0 – 0	Basel	Estádio D. Afonso Henriques, Guimarães
21:30 CET	Stocker  21'	UEFA summary FCB summary	36' Douglas  58' Meireles	Attendance: 21,452 Referee: Grzegorz Gilewski (Polish Football Association)

Basel v Vitória Guimarães

27 August 2008 2nd Leg	Basel	2 – 1 (2 – 1 agg.)	Vitória Guimarães	St. Jakob-Park, Basel
20:15 CET	Stocker 11' (1:0) Huggel  44' Derdiyok 54' (2:1)	UEFA summary FCB summary	15' (pen. 1:1) Fajardo  20' Nilson  27' Meireles  41' Alves  46' Douglas  74' Moreno	Attendance: 30,002 Referee: Pieter Vink (Royal Dutch Football Association)

Group stage

Main article: 2008–09 UEFA Champions League group stage § Group C

Basel v Shakhtar Donetsk

16 September 2008 Round 1	Basel	1 – 2	Shakhtar Donetsk	St. Jakob-Park, Basel
20:45	Zanni  37' Abraham 90+3' (1:2)	UEFA summary FCB summary	25' (0:1) Fernandinho  33' Hübschman  41' Shevchuk 45+1' (0:2) Jádson  90' Brandão	Attendance: 34,820 Referee: Terje Hauge (Norway)

Sporting CP v Basel

1 October 2008 Round 2	Sporting CP	2 – 0	Basel	Estádio José Alvalade, Lisbon
20:45	Grimi  17' Veloso  45' Romagnoli 55' (1:0) Tonel  85' Derlei 86' (2:0)	UEFA summary FCB summary	74' Streller	Attendance: 22,638 Referee: Nicola Rizzoli (Italian Football Federation)

Basel v Barcelona

22 October 2008 Round 3	Basel	0 – 5	Barcelona	St. Jakob-Park, Basel
20:45	Rubio  43' Abraham  84'	UEFA summary FCB summary	4' (0:1) Messi 15' (0:2) Busquets 22' (0:3) Bojan 46' (0:4) Bojan 48' (0:5) Xavi	Attendance: 37,500 Referee: Eric Braamhaar (Royal Dutch Football Association)

Barcelona v Basel

4 November 2008 Round 4	Barcelona	1 – 1	Basel	Camp Nou, Barcelona
20:45	Messi 62' (1:0)	UEFA summary FCB summary	82' (1:1) Derdiyok  89' Costanzo	Attendance: 49,479 Referee: Alexandru Tudor (Romania)

Shakhtar Donetsk v Basel

26 November 2008 Round 5	Shakhtar Donetsk	5 – 0	Basel	RSC Olimpiyskiy, Donetsk
20:45	Jádson 32' (1:0) Willian 50' (2:0) Jádson 65' (3:0) Jádson 72' (4:0) Seleznyov 75' (5:0)	UEFA summary FCB summary	87' Stocker	Attendance: 15,000 Referee: Kristinn Jakobsson (Iceland)

Basel v Sporting CP

9 December 2008 Round 6	Basel	0 – 1	Sporting CP	St. Jakob-Park, Basel
20:45	Streller  45'	UEFA summary FCB summary	19' (0:1) Djaló  72' Caneira	Attendance: 30,248 Referee: Paul Allaerts (Belgium)

Group C table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Barcelona	6	4	1	1	18	8	+10	13	Advance to knockout phase
2	Sporting CP	6	4	0	2	8	8	0	12
3	Shakhtar Donetsk	6	3	0	3	11	7	+4	9	Transfer to UEFA Cup
4	Basel	6	0	1	5	2	16	−14	1

Source: RSSSF

Player statistics

League goalscorers/assists

Updated to games played 29 May 2009

League Scorer	Goals
Scott Chipperfield	12
Benjamin Huggel	10
Eren Derdiyok	9
Marko Perovic	8
Valentin Stocker	6
Marco Streller	6
Orhan Mustafi	4
Carlitos	3
Marcos Gelabert	3
Jurgen Gjasula	2
Eduardo Rubio	2
Ivan Ergić	2
Fabian Frei	2
Reto Zanni	2
Opposition own goals	1
Total goals scored	72

Name	League Assists
Carlitos	8
Fabian Frei	7
Eren Derdiyok	6
Marco Streller	6
Valentin Stocker	6
Scott Chipperfield	4
Marko Perovic	4
Eduardo Rubio	2
Marcos Gelabert	2
Behrang Safari	1
Benjamin Huggel	1
Jurgen Gjasula	1
Reto Zanni	1
Ivan Ergić	1
Total assists made	50

Swiss Cup goalscorers/assists

Updated to games played 13 April 2009

Cup Scorer	Goals
Eren Derdiyok	3
Jurgen Gjasula	2
Eduardo Rubio	1
Marco Streller	1
Orhan Mustafi	1
Benjamin Huggel	1
Opposition own goals	1
Total goals scored	10

Name	Cup Assists
Reto Zanni	2
Valentin Stocker	1
Carlitos	1
Eduardo Rubio	1
Marko Perović	1
Total assists made	6

European goalscorers/assists

Updated to games played 26 November 2008

European Scorer	Goals
Eren Derdiyok	2
Benjamin Huggel	2
Ivan Ergić	2
Scott Chipperfield	1
Valentin Stocker	1
David Abraham	1
Total goals scored	9

Name	European Assists
Carlitos	2
Jurgen Gjasula	2
Eren Derdiyok	1
Valentin Stocker	1
Ivan Ergić	1
Marko Perović	1
Total assists made	8

Total goalscorers/assists

Updated to games played 29 May 2009

All Game Scorer	Goals
Eren Derdiyok	14
Scott Chipperfield	13
Benjamin Huggel	13
Marko Perović	8
Valentin Stocker	7
Marco Streller	7
Orhan Mustafi	5
Jurgen Gjasula	4
Ivan Ergić	4
Carlitos	3
Marcos Gelabert	3
Eduardo Rubio	3
Fabian Frei	2
Reto Zanni	2
David Abraham	1
Opposition own goals	2
Total goals scored	91

Name	All Assists
Carlitos	11
Valentin Stocker	8
Fabian Frei	7
Eren Derdiyok	7
Marco Streller	6
Marko Perović	6
Scott Chipperfield	4
Eduardo Rubio	3
Jurgen Gjasula	3
Reto Zanni	3
Marcos Gelabert	2
Ivan Ergić	2
Behrang Safari	1
Benjamin Huggel	1
Total Assists Made	64

Honours and awards

Team

• Uhren Cup winner

Individual

• Goal of the Year: Fabian Frei (Basel, scored against Aarau)
• Swiss Youngster of the Year, 2008–09 – Valentin Stocker

External links

• Official site
• football.ch