Johan Manzambi brace gives Murat Yakin a real selection call

Johan Manzambi did not need long to change Switzerland's night against Bosnia & Herzegovina. He came on with less than 20 minutes remaining, scored his first goal three minutes after replacing Dan Ndoye, and finished his brace in the 90th minute of a 4-1 win. It was his first career brace and it leaves Murat Yakin with a decision he probably did not want this quickly.

Why Manzambi’s cameo was so hard to ignore

The numbers explain why this one stood out. Manzambi finished with an 8.5 rating, scored twice in 24 minutes and helped turn a tight contest into a 4-1 result. Tarik Muharemovic was shown a red card after Manzambi’s involvement in the move that led to Switzerland’s second-half control, and the game tilted sharply from there.

Yakin sounded like a coach already trying to find the best shape for him. Speaking to goal.com, he said: "Johan is a happy guy with incredible footballing skills. We can use him flexibly, more defensively, in midfield, but also on the wing as a striker." He added: "Offensively, he has complete freedom. You saw that today – he can apply pressure, he has good dribbling skills and he can finish."

That is the main reason a start against Canada feels difficult to dodge. If a player can impact a game from the bench like that, and the coach is openly talking about midfield, wing and striker options, the safest move is usually to give him more minutes, not fewer.

What the Freiburg season says about the ceiling

This was not a random one-off burst from nowhere. Manzambi’s rise follows a SC Freiburg season in which he was credited with 16 goal contributions in 47 appearances across all competitions. Other reporting put the club output at seven goals and six assists, so the season picture is not perfectly uniform, but both versions point in the same direction: he has been producing for a while.

Manzambi was more cautious when asked about his future. Speaking to goal.com, he said: "I'm still in Freiburg. I'm focused on the World Cup. I don't know what I'll be doing next season." Thomas Muller also suggested Bayern München should look at him, but that was a pundit’s view, not a transfer update.

For now, the cleaner story is what happened on the pitch. Johan Manzambi has two World Cup goals, a strong club season behind him and a coach who clearly trusts his attacking freedom. After Switzerland vs Bosnia & Herzegovina, the next selection has become the interesting part.