EFC Brief

Six EFC-linked names dot this one, but the pick is Manuel Akanji, the composed Swiss centre-half who anchors everything Murat Yakin's side does at the back. He'll have his hands full, because Algeria arrive stacked with attacking EFC connections — Riyad Mahrez still pulling strings from the right, Houssem Aouar threading through midfield, and Rayan Aït-Nouri overlapping down the left. That's a lot of familiar faces pointed at Akanji and his fellow EFC-linked defender Ricardo Rodríguez. The colour of the night belongs to Luca Zidane, son of Zinedine, now guarding the Algeria goal after switching his international allegiance — a genuinely great storyline for anyone tracking the EFC net. With confirmed lineups in and an 11:00 PM ET kick-off, the shape is set: Switzerland's two-man EFC rearguard against Algeria's four-strong EFC contingent. Few matches this tournament pack this density of Everton-adjacent talent into a single ninety minutes.