Euro 2016: Xhaka brothers make history

For the first time in European Championship history, two brothers have played for opposing sides.

Switzerland's Granit Xhaka, left, talks with his brother, Albania's Taulant Xhaka at the end of their Euro Group A match n Lens.

For the first time in European Championship history, two brothers played for opposing sides when Switzerland beat Albania 1-0 on Saturday in their opening Group A match.

Granit Xhaka helped the Swiss to victory over an Albania side that included his older brother Taulant, in their first international encounter on different teams.

“It was a very special moment for our family having two sons playing on opposite sides,” said Granit, who was recently signed by Arsenal after captaining Borussia Monchengladbach to fourth place in the Bundesliga last season.

“I think we played very well, very professional, we gave everything for our country, both of us. We’re both very happy, me a bit more because we won.”

The Xhaka brothers were born in Basel, Switzerland to a Kosovar-Albanian family. They both played for Swiss national youth teams before Taulant decided to represent Albania at senior level. Granit opted to stay with Switzerland.

After the national anthems were played on Saturday, the two added a brotherly hug to the usual handshakes between the two teams. Both midfielders, they first clashed over the ball just shortly after kick-off, with Granit winning the duel.

And they went on to make their presences felt on the pitch.

The 23-year-old Granit had a shot blocked in the fourth minute, just seconds before a corner that led to the winning goal, and he later stopped Taulant’s attacking moves in the 13th and again in 19th.

Taulant blasted a shot wide in the first half, while Granit emulated him in the second. “I’m happy we were both able to play well,” Granit said. “There was a lot of pressure on our shoulders but for me and for my brother it was great that we put in 100 per cent, we really pushed our limits.”

Both squads have players who were eligible to represent either country, following the migration of Albanian families with roots in Kosovo to Switzerland since the 1980s to escape the Balkan wars.

AP