2009–10 FC Basel Season
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FC Basel began their 2009–10 season with various warm-up matches against Swiss lower league, Ukrainian Vyscha Liha, and
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clubs. The club's aim for their first teaml during the 2009–10 season were to win back the
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championship and to win the
cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, clay, ...
title. It was also their aim qualify for the
UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. It ...
group stage.


Overview

The pre-season started with several major changes, the biggest being the sacking of coach Christian Gross, who was replaced by the German
Thorsten Fink Thorsten Fink (born 29 October 1967) is a German football coach and a former footballer, currently works as manager of Riga FC. Career Fink began his career with Borussia Dortmund's reserve squad before moving to SG Wattenscheid 09, where he hel ...
. Fink was appointed as Basel's new manager on 9 June 2009. The new manager let several players go by not extending their contracts. These were Ronny Hodel,
Jürgen Gjasula Jürgen Fatmir Gjasula (born 5 December 1985) is an Albanian professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Berliner AK 07. He also holds German citizenship. Club career SC Freiburg Born in Tirana, Albania, Gjasula started hi ...
,
Ivan Ergić Ivan Ergić ( sr-Cyrl, Иван Ергић, ; born 21 January 1981) is a retired Serbian footballer who played as a midfielder. Born in modern-day Croatia and raised in Australia, he began his career at Perth Glory and was briefly with Juventus ...
and Eduardo. Star striker Eren Derdiyok was sold to
Bayer 04 Leverkusen Bayer 04 Leverkusen Fußball GmbH, also known as Bayer 04 Leverkusen (), Bayer Leverkusen, or simply Leverkusen, is a professional football club based in Leverkusen in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. The club competes in the Bundesliga, t ...
and Eduardo Rubio returned to Cruz Azul because his loan was not made permanent. A number of players were brought into the first team from the under-21 squad to replace them, including
Xherdan Shaqiri Xherdan Shaqiri (; born 10 October 1991) is a Swiss professional footballer who plays as a winger for Major League Soccer club Chicago Fire and the Switzerland national team. Shaqiri began his career at FC Basel, winning honours including t ...
,
Marco Aratore Marco Calogero Aratore (born 4 June 1991) is a Swiss football coach and a former player who played as a midfielder. He is a youth coach at Basel. He was Swiss youth international footballer. Career Club Basel ;Youth career Aratore played in the ...
and Oliver Klaus. A number of new players were signed, the highest profile being
Alexander Frei Alexander Frei or Alex Frei (born 15 July 1979) is a Swiss professional football coach and a former player who played as a forward. He is currently the manager of Basel. He began his career at Basel, going on to various other clubs in Switzerla ...
from
Borussia Dortmund Ballspielverein Borussia 09 e. V. Dortmund, commonly known as Borussia Dortmund (), BVB (), or simply Dortmund (), is a German professional sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is best known for its men's professional footb ...
. Others new signings included
Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...
Çağdaş Atan Çağdaş Atan (; born 29 February 1980) is a Turkish football manager and a former player who played as a central defender. He is the manager of Kayserispor of the Turkish Super League. Club career Atan began his career with Altay SK before mo ...
from Energie Cottbus,
Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...
ian
Samuel Inkoom Samuel Inkoom (born 1 June 1989) is a Ghanaian professional footballer who plays as a defender for Accra Hearts of Oak S.C. Between 2008 and 2014 he made 44 appearances scoring 1 goal for the Ghana national team. He has played in teams based ...
from
Asante Kotoko Asante Kotoko Sporting Club, simply known as Asante Kotoko, is a professional football club founded on 31 August 1935 and based in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. Nicknamed the ''Porcupine Warriors'', they compete in the Ghana Premier Lea ...
, Massimo Colomba from rivals
Grasshopper Grasshoppers are a group of insects belonging to the suborder Caelifera. They are among what is possibly the most ancient living group of chewing herbivorous insects, dating back to the early Triassic around 250 million years ago. Grasshopp ...
,
Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
ian Antônio da Silva on loan from
Karlsruher SC Karlsruher SC is a German association football club, based in Karlsruhe, Baden-Württemberg that currently plays in the 2. Bundesliga, the second tier of German football. Domestically, the club was crowned German champion in 1909, and won the D ...
and Cabral who returned after being on loan to Sevilla.


The Campaign


Domestic League

In domestic affairs, Basel swept the board, despite a poor start to the season. After the eighth round Basel were only in ninth position in the league table, second last. They had lost three and won only two of the first eight league matches. This was also due to the number of injuries that the players suffered in the pre-season and in the early stages. After the weak start the results changed to the better, the team won seven of the eight subsequent matches. Under these were a 4–0 home win against St. Gallen and a 5–0 against
Sion Sion may refer to * an alternative transliteration of Zion People * Sion (name) or Siôn, a Welsh and other given name and surname, including a list of people and fictional characters with the name * Shion or Sion, a Japanese given name Plac ...
. The most spectacular, however, was the 5–4 away win against
Luzern , neighboring_municipalities= Adligenswil, Ebikon, Emmen, Horw, Kriens, Malters, Meggen, Neuenkirch Lucerne ( , ; High Alemannic: ''Lozärn'') or Luzern ()Other languages: gsw, Lozärn, label=Lucerne German; it, Lucerna ; rm, Lucerna . is a ...
, where FCB took the lead three times, only for Luzern to equalise each time, only minutes later. In the 87th minute Luzern went in front for the first time and looked as though they would win, but entering into added time
Alexander Frei Alexander Frei or Alex Frei (born 15 July 1979) is a Swiss professional football coach and a former player who played as a forward. He is currently the manager of Basel. He began his career at Basel, going on to various other clubs in Switzerla ...
equalised for FCB and in the fourth minute of added time
Marco Streller Marco Streller (born 18 June 1981) is a Swiss former footballer who played as a striker and is best known for his years with FC Basel and the Switzerland national team. He was the sporting director of FC Basel from June 2017 until June 2019. Sin ...
scored the definitive winner. However, following the teams second defeat against table leaders Young Boys, Basel went into the winter break thirteen points behind the league leaders. In the second half of the season the team played their best football. Basel with nine straight victories, 16 wins in their last 18 games, they made a comeback in the table. Despite suffering an embarrassing 0–4 away defeat against the
Grasshoppers Grasshoppers are a group of insects belonging to the suborder Caelifera. They are among what is possibly the most ancient living group of chewing herbivorous insects, dating back to the early Triassic around 250 million years ago. Grasshop ...
in the fifth last round, Basel drew level with Young Boys on 77 points before the last match of the season. Strangely enough, in the last round the two teams played against each other. This match was in Bern at the
Stade de Suisse The Wankdorf Stadium (; between 2005 and 2020 known as Stade de Suisse) is a football stadium in Bern, Switzerland. The second largest all-seater football stadium in Switzerland, it currently serves as the home ground of the Swiss football team ...
on 16 May 2010, the YB at home against FCB, with a capacity crowd of 31,120 spectators. Both teams started well into this so called "Finalissima" and both teams created their chances. However, after
Alberto Regazzoni Alberto Regazzoni (born 4 May 1983) is a footballer from Switzerland who currently plays as left winger for AC Sementina. He has also played for the Swiss national squad. He started his career at FC Lugano, after the club faced bankruptcy near ...
was cautioned for a foul on
Valentin Stocker Valentin Stocker (born 12 April 1989) is a Swiss former professional footballer who played as a left midfielder. He has played for the Switzerland national team. Club career Basel Born in Lucerne, Stocker began his youth career with SC Kri ...
in the 23rd minute, Basel won control of the game and home goalkeeper Marco Wölfli was forced to make a good save following Scott Chipperfield's left footed shot. Jacques Zoua had a good shock blocked and Stocker failed to connect to a cross from the right. In the 38th minute a cross from defender
Scott Sutter Scott Lee Sutter (born 13 May 1986) is a Swiss footballer who plays as a right-back. Previously he spent 14 years playing in the Swiss Super League for Grasshopper Zürich, FC Zurich and Young Boys and in Major League Soccer for Orlando City S ...
gave
Seydou Doumbia Seydou Doumbia (; born 31 December 1987) is an Ivorian professional association footballer who last played as a forward for Maltese Premier League club Ħamrun Spartans. After beginning his career in the Ivory Coast and Japan, he arrived in E ...
, the YB top scorer his first chance, but the header went wide. Directly after this Basel game forward with a long ball from Zoua to
Carlitos Carlitos is a Spanish or Portuguese nickname (usually a diminutive for Carlos). It may refer to: Persons * Carlitos (footballer, born 1921) (1921–2001), former Brazilian football striker * Carlitos (footballer, born 1976), full name Carlos Do ...
, controlling the ball well he saw Stocker free on the other side of the penalty area. Carlitos played a long pass, the ball bounced high on the artificial grass field, but the winger was able to flick the ball into the net. Then, exactly on the hour, a left footed cross from Stocker found Scott Chipperfield unmarked in front of goal and he was able to head home and give Basel a 2–0 win.
Seydou Doumbia Seydou Doumbia (; born 31 December 1987) is an Ivorian professional association footballer who last played as a forward for Maltese Premier League club Ħamrun Spartans. After beginning his career in the Ivory Coast and Japan, he arrived in E ...
became league top goal scorer with 30 goals. Joint second top scorer in the league was Basel's top scorer
Marco Streller Marco Streller (born 18 June 1981) is a Swiss former footballer who played as a striker and is best known for his years with FC Basel and the Switzerland national team. He was the sporting director of FC Basel from June 2017 until June 2019. Sin ...
with 21 goals. He was level with
Cristian Ianu Cristian Florin Ianu (born 16 October 1983 in Timișoara) is a Romanian footballer. Club career In 2003, he went to Switzerland to join AC Bellinzona, along with former UT Arad teammate Adrian Piţ, leaving four years later to join FC Aarau at ...
from
FC Luzern Fussball-Club Luzern (), or simply abbreviated to FCL, is a Swiss sports club based in Lucerne (german: Luzern). It is best known for its professional football team, which plays in the Super League, the top tier of the Swiss football league syste ...
and
Émile Mpenza Eka Basunga Lokonda "Émile" Mpenza (born 4 July 1978) is a Belgian former footballer who played as a striker. He has been capped at international level by Belgium. His older brother, Mbo, also represented Belgium. Club career Belgium, German ...
from FC Sion. Second top scorer in the team was
Alexander Frei Alexander Frei or Alex Frei (born 15 July 1979) is a Swiss professional football coach and a former player who played as a forward. He is currently the manager of Basel. He began his career at Basel, going on to various other clubs in Switzerla ...
with 15, third was Scott Chipperfield with 13, followed by
Valentin Stocker Valentin Stocker (born 12 April 1989) is a Swiss former professional footballer who played as a left midfielder. He has played for the Switzerland national team. Club career Basel Born in Lucerne, Stocker began his youth career with SC Kri ...
with 12 and
Benjamin Huggel Benjamin "Beni" Huggel (born 7 July 1977) is a Swiss former footballer who played as a midfielder for FC Basel in the Swiss Super League and for Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga. He won a total of twelve titles with Basel, seven League Cha ...
with 11 goals. The team achieved their aim by winning the championship.


Domestic Cup

Basel entered the
2009–10 Swiss Cup The 2009–10 Swiss Cup was the 85th season of Switzerland's annual football cup competition. It began on 17 September with the first game of Round 1 and ended on 9 May 2010 with the Final held at St. Jakob-Park, Basel. The competition was won by F ...
in the first round of the competition and the team's clear aim for the Cup was to win it. In the first round, teams from the Super League and Challenge League were seeded and could not play against each other. In a match, the home advantage was granted to the team from the lower league, if applicable. ;SC Cham (20 September 2009) Basel were drawn against
SC Cham SC Cham 1910 is a Swiss football team which plays in the third tier of the Swiss football pyramid. They are based in Cham and were founded in 1910. History The club was founded on 14 June 1910 and was the first football club in Canton Zug. ...
, who at that time played in the 1. Liga, the third tier of Swiss football. The match was played at the
Herti Allmend Stadion Herti Allmend Stadion is a multi-use stadium in Zug, Switzerland. It is currently used mostly for football (soccer), football matches and is the home ground of Zug 94 and SC Cham in Swiss Challenge League 2007-08, 2007-08 Challenge League season ...
in
Zug , neighboring_municipalities = Cham, Baar, Walchwil, Steinhausen, Unterägeri , twintowns = Fürstenfeld (Austria), Kalesija (Bosnia-Herzegowina) Zug (Standard German: , Alemannic German: ; french: Zoug it, Zugo r ...
with a sold-out capacity crowd of 5,210 spectators. Basel dominated their opponents, although they were able to hold on until shortly before the half time whistle. In the 44th minute
Federico Almerares Federico Almerares (born 2 May 1985 in Mar del Plata, Buenos Aires Province) is an Argentina, Argentine former football (soccer), footballer who played as Forward (association football), striker or centre forward. Almerares came through the ran ...
was able to put the visitors into the lead. Shortly after the break it was again Almerares who scored Basel's second goal and in 76th minute
Orhan Mustafi Orhan Mustafi ( mk, Орхан Мустафи; born 4 April 1990 in Kumanovo, SR Macedonia, SFR Yugoslavia) is a Swiss footballer of Albanian descent who plays for Young Fellows Juventus. Career Youth football Mustafi, who moved to Switzerland ...
netted their third. The hosts were getting tired, but although the visitors were creating chances, a shot from
Alexander Frei Alexander Frei or Alex Frei (born 15 July 1979) is a Swiss professional football coach and a former player who played as a forward. He is currently the manager of Basel. He began his career at Basel, going on to various other clubs in Switzerla ...
hit the cross-bar, Basel could not increase the score. With the result at 3–0 Basel advanced to the second round. ;Le Mont (17 October 2009) Teams from the Super League were seeded in the second round and could not play each other. In a match, the home advantage was granted to the team from the lower league, if applicable. Basel were drawn against FC Le Mont-sur-Lausanne, who at that time were semi-professional and played in the Challenge League, the second tier of Swiss football. The match was played at Stade Olympique de la Pontaise in front of 1,000 spectators. Basel dominated their opponents from the first minutes. After a corner in the fifth minute and a header from David Abraham a Le Mont defender was able to clear from the goal-line. But then
Marco Aratore Marco Calogero Aratore (born 4 June 1991) is a Swiss football coach and a former player who played as a midfielder. He is a youth coach at Basel. He was Swiss youth international footballer. Career Club Basel ;Youth career Aratore played in the ...
,
Marco Streller Marco Streller (born 18 June 1981) is a Swiss former footballer who played as a striker and is best known for his years with FC Basel and the Switzerland national team. He was the sporting director of FC Basel from June 2017 until June 2019. Sin ...
and
Federico Almerares Federico Almerares (born 2 May 1985 in Mar del Plata, Buenos Aires Province) is an Argentina, Argentine former football (soccer), footballer who played as Forward (association football), striker or centre forward. Almerares came through the ran ...
scored the goals to put Basel three up before half time. Le Mont never gave up and fought until the end. In the 63rd minute Renato Rocha pulled a goal back for the home time, but there wasn't enough for more. With a 3–1 away win Basel advanced to the third round. ;Zürich (20 November 2009) In the third round, the ties were drawn, there was no seeding, everyone could meet everyone. The home advantage was granted to the team from the lower league, otherwise to the team that was drawn first. Basel were drawn at home against top tier
Zürich Zürich () is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zürich. It is located in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zürich. As of January 2020, the municipality has 43 ...
and the game was watched by 17,749 supporters. Both teams started well, the game was intensive and both teams created chances.
Valentin Stocker Valentin Stocker (born 12 April 1989) is a Swiss former professional footballer who played as a left midfielder. He has played for the Switzerland national team. Club career Basel Born in Lucerne, Stocker began his youth career with SC Kri ...
was able to score a goal after 17 minutes and this put the home team at an advantage. Zürich reacted and Dusan Djurić with their best chance managed the equaliser after 32 minutes. This was the score at half-time and after the break Basel pressed forwards. In the 53rd minute
Alexander Frei Alexander Frei or Alex Frei (born 15 July 1979) is a Swiss professional football coach and a former player who played as a forward. He is currently the manager of Basel. He began his career at Basel, going on to various other clubs in Switzerla ...
put the home team in front. Basel were now in control of the game. Again Frei, just five minutes later, scored to put the home them further into the lead. In the 75th minute
Marco Streller Marco Streller (born 18 June 1981) is a Swiss former footballer who played as a striker and is best known for his years with FC Basel and the Switzerland national team. He was the sporting director of FC Basel from June 2017 until June 2019. Sin ...
put the ball into the Zürich net and the game was as much as decided. In the second minute of over-time
Alexandre Alphonse Alexandre Alphonse (born 17 June 1982) is a French football manager and former professional footballer who played as a striker. He represented Guadeloupe football team between 2009 and 2016. He currently works as an assistant coach in Switz ...
was lucky to collect a diagonal ball from his teammate and he netted to make the final score 4–2 for the home team, who thus advanced to the quarterfinals. ;Biel-Bienne (12 December 2009) The quarterfinals were played as the last match of the year and gave Basel another home tie in the
St. Jakob-Park St. Jakob-Park () is a Swiss sports stadium in Basel. It is the largest football venue in Switzerland and home to FC Basel. "Joggeli", as the venue is nicknamed by the locals, was originally built with a capacity of 33,433 seats. The capacity w ...
. Their opponents were second tier
Biel-Bienne , french: Biennois(e) , neighboring_municipalities= Brügg, Ipsach, Leubringen/Magglingen (''Evilard/Macolin''), Nidau, Orpund, Orvin, Pieterlen, Port, Safnern, Tüscherz-Alfermée, Vauffelin , twintowns = Iserlohn (Germany) B ...
and they were watched by a crowd of just 7,503 people. They saw the favourites take control of the game from the very beginning, but the favorites could not profit from their dominance immediately. In the sixth minute
Marcos Gelabert Marcos Agustín Gelabert (born 16 September 1981, in General Pico, La Pampa) is an Argentine footballer who plays for Gimnasia Mendoza. His position is defensive midfielder. Career Gelabert started his career at Estudiantes de La Plata in the ...
saw his shot rebound from the post and in the ninth minute he saw his header rebound from the cross-bar. Basel kept playing forwards, creating chances and in the 24th minute
Xherdan Shaqiri Xherdan Shaqiri (; born 10 October 1991) is a Swiss professional footballer who plays as a winger for Major League Soccer club Chicago Fire and the Switzerland national team. Shaqiri began his career at FC Basel, winning honours including t ...
also saw his shot rebound from the goal-post. Eventually the goal had to come and in the 45th minute
Alexander Frei Alexander Frei or Alex Frei (born 15 July 1979) is a Swiss professional football coach and a former player who played as a forward. He is currently the manager of Basel. He began his career at Basel, going on to various other clubs in Switzerla ...
put the home team in front. After an hour of play Frei doubled up and nine minutes later
Marco Streller Marco Streller (born 18 June 1981) is a Swiss former footballer who played as a striker and is best known for his years with FC Basel and the Switzerland national team. He was the sporting director of FC Basel from June 2017 until June 2019. Sin ...
managed the third. Although immediately after the restart Dennis Hediger pulled a goal back for the visitors the game was decided and Basel won 3–1 to advance to the semi-finals. ;Kriens (5 April 2010) The semi-finals were played on the afternoon of Easter Monday and Basel were drawn away against
SC Kriens SC Kriens is a football club based in Kriens, Switzerland, who currently play in the Swiss Challenge League. They currently play at the Stadion Kleinfeld and form a local rivalry with FC Lucerne. SC Kriens women's team plays in the Nationall ...
. The match was played in the
Stadion Kleinfeld SC Kriens is a football club based in Kriens, Switzerland, who currently play in the Swiss Challenge League. They currently play at the Stadion Kleinfeld and form a local rivalry with FC Lucerne. SC Kriens women's team plays in the Nationalli ...
in front of over 5,000 spectators, the conditions were dry but not warm. Basel were missing goalkeeper
Franco Costanzo Franco Costanzo Geymonat (born 5 September 1980) is a former Argentine football goalkeeper who last played for Chilean club Universidad Católica of the Primera División. He has earned the reputation of being an eccentric goalkeeper by ofte ...
, midfielder Cabral, and their two Swiss international forwards
Alexander Frei Alexander Frei or Alex Frei (born 15 July 1979) is a Swiss professional football coach and a former player who played as a forward. He is currently the manager of Basel. He began his career at Basel, going on to various other clubs in Switzerla ...
and
Marco Streller Marco Streller (born 18 June 1981) is a Swiss former footballer who played as a striker and is best known for his years with FC Basel and the Switzerland national team. He was the sporting director of FC Basel from June 2017 until June 2019. Sin ...
due to injury. Their midfielder
Valentin Stocker Valentin Stocker (born 12 April 1989) is a Swiss former professional footballer who played as a left midfielder. He has played for the Switzerland national team. Club career Basel Born in Lucerne, Stocker began his youth career with SC Kri ...
returned for the first time to the club where he had played his early youth football before he moved to Basel in 2005. He was received with a warm welcome from the fans, but was also the victim of the first considerably hard foul during the first minutes of the game. Both teams seemed to make no progress during the early stages and it took up until the 17th minute before the first chance was created. Basel's midfielder
Marcos Gelabert Marcos Agustín Gelabert (born 16 September 1981, in General Pico, La Pampa) is an Argentine footballer who plays for Gimnasia Mendoza. His position is defensive midfielder. Career Gelabert started his career at Estudiantes de La Plata in the ...
played a long diagonal cross from the left side, defender
Patrik Baumann Patrik Baumann (born 29 July 1986) is a former Swiss footballer who played as a defender. He usually played as a centre-back, but was also deployed at right-back or in midfield. Football career Baumann started his children's football with loc ...
was unable to clear the ball and
Federico Almerares Federico Almerares (born 2 May 1985 in Mar del Plata, Buenos Aires Province) is an Argentina, Argentine former football (soccer), footballer who played as Forward (association football), striker or centre forward. Almerares came through the ran ...
, who was positioned behind him, put the favorites a goal up. Kriens forward
Janko Pacar Janko Pacar (born 18 August 1990) is a Swiss football forward who currently plays for FC Emmenbrücke. Career In January 2016, he joined Petrolul Ploiești on an 18-month loan deal but the contract expired when the club relegated at the end of ...
had two good chances for the home side, one before the break and one after, but they both failed. Basel controlled the game during the second half, but the game became much more physical, the Kriens team collected four yellow cards and the Basel team three, but the narrow result remained until the end. Basel won 1–0 and thus advanced to the final. ;Lausanne-Sport (9 May 2010) Basel's opponents in the final were
Lausanne-Sport FC Lausanne–Sport (also referred to as LS) is a Swiss football club based in Lausanne in the canton of Vaud. Founded in 1896, Lausanne Sport played in the Swiss Super League in their most recent 2021-22 season, the highest tier of football i ...
, who at that time played in the Challenge League, the second tier of Swiss football. Lausanne had qualified for the final beat beating top tier St. Gallen 2–1 in the semi-final. The final was played in the
St. Jakob-Park St. Jakob-Park () is a Swiss sports stadium in Basel. It is the largest football venue in Switzerland and home to FC Basel. "Joggeli", as the venue is nicknamed by the locals, was originally built with a capacity of 33,433 seats. The capacity w ...
in front of 30,100 spectators and under these was also Swiss international team manager Ottmar Hitzfeld. Basel were clear favourites and the two young international players
Valentin Stocker Valentin Stocker (born 12 April 1989) is a Swiss former professional footballer who played as a left midfielder. He has played for the Switzerland national team. Club career Basel Born in Lucerne, Stocker began his youth career with SC Kri ...
in the 28th minute and
Xherdan Shaqiri Xherdan Shaqiri (; born 10 October 1991) is a Swiss professional footballer who plays as a winger for Major League Soccer club Chicago Fire and the Switzerland national team. Shaqiri began his career at FC Basel, winning honours including t ...
two minutes later put Basel into a comfortable two goal lead by half-time. Just one minute into the second half Jacques Zoua added the third and six minutes later Scott Chipperfield the fourth. The captain of the Swiss international team
Alexander Frei Alexander Frei or Alex Frei (born 15 July 1979) is a Swiss professional football coach and a former player who played as a forward. He is currently the manager of Basel. He began his career at Basel, going on to various other clubs in Switzerla ...
came on as a substitute in the 67th minute, making his comeback after being out injured fracture of his right arm since February. Frei gave the assist as Stocker scored the fifth. The final score was 6–0 as international
Benjamin Huggel Benjamin "Beni" Huggel (born 7 July 1977) is a Swiss former footballer who played as a midfielder for FC Basel in the Swiss Super League and for Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga. He won a total of twelve titles with Basel, seven League Cha ...
scored with a header in the last minute of the game. It had been a fair game, referee Sascha Kever did not have to show a single yellow card. ;Conclusion Basel won the
Swiss Cup The Swiss Cup (; ; ; ) is a football cup tournament that has been organised annually since 1925–26 by the Swiss Football Association. Since 1999 the winner earns the chance to qualify for the UEFA Europa League or the UEFA Europa Conference L ...
for the tenth time in the club's history. Basel achieved the double this season and thus completed their domestic aims. As finalists of the Swiss Cup,
Lausanne , neighboring_municipalities= Bottens, Bretigny-sur-Morrens, Chavannes-près-Renens, Cheseaux-sur-Lausanne, Crissier, Cugy, Écublens, Épalinges, Évian-les-Bains (FR-74), Froideville, Jouxtens-Mézery, Le Mont-sur-Lausanne, Lugrin (FR-74), ...
qualified for the second qualification round of the UEFA Europa League.


UEFA Cup

Basel's clear aim for this competition was to reach the group stage and to advance to the
knock-out stage A knockout (abbreviated to KO or K.O.) is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, muay thai, mixed martial arts, karate, some forms of taekwondo and other sports involving striking ...
, which was to start after the winter break.


Second qualifying round

Basel entered the
2009–10 UEFA Europa League The 2009–10 UEFA Europa League was the first season of the UEFA Europa League, Europe's secondary club football tournament organised by UEFA. The competition was previously known as the UEFA Cup, which had been in existence for 38 years. Spain ...
in the second qualifying round and were drawn against
Andorra , image_flag = Flag of Andorra.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Andorra.svg , symbol_type = Coat of arms , national_motto = la, Virtus Unita Fortior, label=none (Latin)"United virtue is stro ...
ns Santa Coloma. ;Santa Coloma (16 July 2009) The first leg was at home in the
St. Jakob-Park St. Jakob-Park () is a Swiss sports stadium in Basel. It is the largest football venue in Switzerland and home to FC Basel. "Joggeli", as the venue is nicknamed by the locals, was originally built with a capacity of 33,433 seats. The capacity w ...
in front of over 25'000 spectators and this high amount of spectators was because the club granted free entry to everybody. Basel were clear favorites to win the match and so new head-coach
Thorsten Fink Thorsten Fink (born 29 October 1967) is a German football coach and a former footballer, currently works as manager of Riga FC. Career Fink began his career with Borussia Dortmund's reserve squad before moving to SG Wattenscheid 09, where he hel ...
used the opportunity to bring some young players from the U-21 team into the squad. Basel started well and pushed forward as expected. In the 5th minute Santa Colma goalkeeper Ricardo Fernandez had to react quickly to deflect a shot from
Benjamin Huggel Benjamin "Beni" Huggel (born 7 July 1977) is a Swiss former footballer who played as a midfielder for FC Basel in the Swiss Super League and for Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga. He won a total of twelve titles with Basel, seven League Cha ...
onto the post. It was one of the youngsters in the starting eleven
Serkan Şahin Serkan Şahin (born 15 February 1988) is a Turkish former footballer who played mainly as a defender, but also as defensive midfielder. Career Şahin began his children's football with local club FC Bubendorf, but soon moved to the youth dep ...
who put the hosts a goal up after 23rd minutes. In the 28th minute Antônio da Silva netted again for Basel, but the linesman ruled him offside. Three minutes after half time
Marco Streller Marco Streller (born 18 June 1981) is a Swiss former footballer who played as a striker and is best known for his years with FC Basel and the Switzerland national team. He was the sporting director of FC Basel from June 2017 until June 2019. Sin ...
scored Basel's second goal and in the 59th minute
Federico Almerares Federico Almerares (born 2 May 1985 in Mar del Plata, Buenos Aires Province) is an Argentina, Argentine former football (soccer), footballer who played as Forward (association football), striker or centre forward. Almerares came through the ran ...
scored as well and the match ended 3–0 in Basel's favour. ;Return match (23 July 2009) The second leg was played in
Estadi Comunal d'Aixovall The Camp d’Esports d’Aixovall, officially named DEVK-Arena due to an sponsorship arrangement, was a former football stadium in Aixovall, in the parish Sant Julià de Lòria, near the capital, Andorra la Vella, in Andorra. The stadium had a ...
one week later. Basel again dominated their opponents and
Marco Streller Marco Streller (born 18 June 1981) is a Swiss former footballer who played as a striker and is best known for his years with FC Basel and the Switzerland national team. He was the sporting director of FC Basel from June 2017 until June 2019. Sin ...
put them ahead in the 12th minute. Two minutes later
Marcos Gelabert Marcos Agustín Gelabert (born 16 September 1981, in General Pico, La Pampa) is an Argentine footballer who plays for Gimnasia Mendoza. His position is defensive midfielder. Career Gelabert started his career at Estudiantes de La Plata in the ...
doubled up. Five minutes before the break Santa Coloma's Argentinian defender José Daniel Álvarez was unlucky and deflected a ball passed his own goalkeeper. Directly afterwards Santa Coloma pressed forward and the Basel defence brought Maicon down. He took the spot-kick himself sending goalkeeper
Franco Costanzo Franco Costanzo Geymonat (born 5 September 1980) is a former Argentine football goalkeeper who last played for Chilean club Universidad Católica of the Primera División. He has earned the reputation of being an eccentric goalkeeper by ofte ...
the wrong way. Basel dominated the second half, but could not create dangerous situations until the final minutes. Three minutes from time substitute
Federico Almerares Federico Almerares (born 2 May 1985 in Mar del Plata, Buenos Aires Province) is an Argentina, Argentine former football (soccer), footballer who played as Forward (association football), striker or centre forward. Almerares came through the ran ...
ran clear and scored his goal to and the match ended with a 4–1 away victory for Basel, thus victors with a 7–1 on aggregate.


Third qualifying round

FCB were then drawn against
KR Reykjavík KR is the ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 and WMO country code for South Korea. KR or Kr may also refer to: Sports * KR (basketball club), associated with Knattspyrnufélag Reykjavíkur * Knattspyrnufélag Reykjavíkur, an Icelandic football club * Kickoff r ...
of
Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...
in the third qualifying round. They in their turn had beaten Greek team
Larissa Larissa (; el, Λάρισα, , ) is the capital and largest city of the Thessaly region in Greece. It is the fifth-most populous city in Greece with a population of 144,651 according to the 2011 census. It is also capital of the Larissa regiona ...
in the previous qualifying round. ;KR Reykjavík (30 July 2009) The first leg took place at
KR-völlur KR-völlur is a football stadium in Reykjavík, Iceland. It is currently used mostly for football matches and has been the home stadium of Knattspyrnufélag Reykjavíkur since 1984. The stadium holds about 2,700 people and is located at Kaplaskj ...
on a dry and sunny pitch on 30 July in front of 1,500 spectators. Basel had started well, but the goal scored by
Alexander Frei Alexander Frei or Alex Frei (born 15 July 1979) is a Swiss professional football coach and a former player who played as a forward. He is currently the manager of Basel. He began his career at Basel, going on to various other clubs in Switzerla ...
after four minutes was disallowed due to an off-side decision by Spanish referee
Fernando Teixeira Vitienes Fernando Teixeira Vitienes (born 28 July 1971), also referred to as Teixeira I, is a Spanish former football referee, affiliated to the Committee of Referees of Cantabria. Born in Santander on 28 July 1971, he promoted to La Liga in the 2003 ...
. Then, early goals from Gudmundur Benediktsson, after six minutes, and Grétar Sigurdsson, on nine minutes, gave the home side a 2–0 lead. Basel took control of the game after this early shock, they played well together and pressed forwards, but it was not until the 58th minute before Scott Chipperfield pulled one back and until the 83rd minute before
Federico Almerares Federico Almerares (born 2 May 1985 in Mar del Plata, Buenos Aires Province) is an Argentina, Argentine former football (soccer), footballer who played as Forward (association football), striker or centre forward. Almerares came through the ran ...
levelled the score. Basel came away with a deserved two all draw. ;Return match (6 August 2009) The second leg in Switzerland took place and a sunny and warm evening in front of 13,117 spectators. Head-coach
Thorsten Fink Thorsten Fink (born 29 October 1967) is a German football coach and a former footballer, currently works as manager of Riga FC. Career Fink began his career with Borussia Dortmund's reserve squad before moving to SG Wattenscheid 09, where he hel ...
again made multipal changes to the starting eleven, but the players understood themselves well and played an attacking football with both
Alexander Frei Alexander Frei or Alex Frei (born 15 July 1979) is a Swiss professional football coach and a former player who played as a forward. He is currently the manager of Basel. He began his career at Basel, going on to various other clubs in Switzerla ...
and
Marco Streller Marco Streller (born 18 June 1981) is a Swiss former footballer who played as a striker and is best known for his years with FC Basel and the Switzerland national team. He was the sporting director of FC Basel from June 2017 until June 2019. Sin ...
coming to early chances. Frei then used a good Streller pass to put the home team a goal up after 29 minutes. Seconds before half time
Marcos Gelabert Marcos Agustín Gelabert (born 16 September 1981, in General Pico, La Pampa) is an Argentine footballer who plays for Gimnasia Mendoza. His position is defensive midfielder. Career Gelabert started his career at Estudiantes de La Plata in the ...
challenge on Takefusa was ruled as penalty and because Gelabert protested he was shown a second yellow card and sent-off. Takefusa sunk the spot-kick leaving keeper
Franco Costanzo Franco Costanzo Geymonat (born 5 September 1980) is a former Argentine football goalkeeper who last played for Chilean club Universidad Católica of the Primera División. He has earned the reputation of being an eccentric goalkeeper by ofte ...
with no chance. Despite being a man less in the second half Basel pushed forward. A free-kick from Scott Chipperfield in the 77th minute hit the near post and the next chance was netted by
Xherdan Shaqiri Xherdan Shaqiri (; born 10 October 1991) is a Swiss professional footballer who plays as a winger for Major League Soccer club Chicago Fire and the Switzerland national team. Shaqiri began his career at FC Basel, winning honours including t ...
to put the hosts in front again. The visitors were under pressure and defending with all they had and picked up three yellow cards for fouls in just three minutes. Basel were awarded a penalty on 79 minutes and Alex Frei converted it as the match ended with a 3–1 win for Basel, meaning they won 5–3 on aggregate.


Play-off round

Basel progressed to the play-off round. With their
coefficient In mathematics, a coefficient is a multiplicative factor in some term of a polynomial, a series, or an expression; it is usually a number, but may be any expression (including variables such as , and ). When the coefficients are themselves var ...
51.050 they were seeded and were drawn against FK Baku of
Azerbaijan Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...
with one of the lowest coefficients 0.899. Baku had dropped into this round after being eliminated from the 2009–10 UEFA Champions League qualifying phase (Champions Path) by Levski Sofia. Basel were clear favourites, but although Baku meant that there would be an arduous journey to Azerbaijan, on the other hand the chances of success were extremely good. ;Baku (20 August 2009) The first leg was played in
Baku Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world a ...
at
Tofik Bakhramov Stadium The Tofiq Bahramov Republican Stadium ( az, Tofiq Bəhramov adına Respublika Stadionu) is a multi-purpose stadium in Baku, Azerbaijan. It is currently used mostly for football matches. It served as the home ground for the Azerbaijan national foo ...
as
Baku Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world a ...
's normal grounds
Guzanli Olympic Stadium Guzanli Olympic Complex Stadium is located in Quzanlı, Aghdam, Azerbaijan. It is used by FK Karabakh as home stadium since May 2009 and has a capacity of 2000. References See also *List of football stadiums in Azerbaijan This is a list of f ...
did not meet UEFA criteria. The attendance was some 13,000 people and the referee was Zsolt Szabó from the Hungarian Football Federation. He was called into action very early because of the hard ways of playing, there were three/four hard fouls and then after another Ernad Skulić was shown the yellow card in the third minute. The game calmed from then immediately and both teams played well, especially the visitors, but it was Fernando Nestor Pérez who put the locals 1–0 ahead just after half time. Basel head-coach
Thorsten Fink Thorsten Fink (born 29 October 1967) is a German football coach and a former footballer, currently works as manager of Riga FC. Career Fink began his career with Borussia Dortmund's reserve squad before moving to SG Wattenscheid 09, where he hel ...
then reacted and substituted in the two attacking midfielders
Carlitos Carlitos is a Spanish or Portuguese nickname (usually a diminutive for Carlos). It may refer to: Persons * Carlitos (footballer, born 1921) (1921–2001), former Brazilian football striker * Carlitos (footballer, born 1976), full name Carlos Do ...
and
Xherdan Shaqiri Xherdan Shaqiri (; born 10 October 1991) is a Swiss professional footballer who plays as a winger for Major League Soccer club Chicago Fire and the Switzerland national team. Shaqiri began his career at FC Basel, winning honours including t ...
for the defensive players
Samuel Inkoom Samuel Inkoom (born 1 June 1989) is a Ghanaian professional footballer who plays as a defender for Accra Hearts of Oak S.C. Between 2008 and 2014 he made 44 appearances scoring 1 goal for the Ghana national team. He has played in teams based ...
and
Behrang Safari Behrang Safari ( fa, بهرنگ صفری, ; born 9 February 1985) is a Swedish former professional footballer who played as a defender. Starting off his professional career with Malmö FF in 2004, he went on to represent FC Basel and RSC Anderl ...
. The changes worked-out and the team turned it around and won 3–1, scoring three goals in six minutes, these coming two from
Marco Streller Marco Streller (born 18 June 1981) is a Swiss former footballer who played as a striker and is best known for his years with FC Basel and the Switzerland national team. He was the sporting director of FC Basel from June 2017 until June 2019. Sin ...
and the other from
Benjamin Huggel Benjamin "Beni" Huggel (born 7 July 1977) is a Swiss former footballer who played as a midfielder for FC Basel in the Swiss Super League and for Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga. He won a total of twelve titles with Basel, seven League Cha ...
. ;Return match (27 August 2009) One week later the second leg at
St. Jakob-Park St. Jakob-Park () is a Swiss sports stadium in Basel. It is the largest football venue in Switzerland and home to FC Basel. "Joggeli", as the venue is nicknamed by the locals, was originally built with a capacity of 33,433 seats. The capacity w ...
took place in front of 7,113 spectators. Basel started well and created chances. In the 32nd minute
Federico Almerares Federico Almerares (born 2 May 1985 in Mar del Plata, Buenos Aires Province) is an Argentina, Argentine former football (soccer), footballer who played as Forward (association football), striker or centre forward. Almerares came through the ran ...
eventually converted one of their chances to give them the lead. The players were still celebrating their first success and did not concentrate as
Baku Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world a ...
played a fast counter-attack, Felipe Almeida Félix took his chance and put the teams level again. It was Basel's turn to react and they did.
Marcos Gelabert Marcos Agustín Gelabert (born 16 September 1981, in General Pico, La Pampa) is an Argentine footballer who plays for Gimnasia Mendoza. His position is defensive midfielder. Career Gelabert started his career at Estudiantes de La Plata in the ...
put the hosts 2–1 up on 36 minutes. Basel were in control of the match and in the second half
Alexander Frei Alexander Frei or Alex Frei (born 15 July 1979) is a Swiss professional football coach and a former player who played as a forward. He is currently the manager of Basel. He began his career at Basel, going on to various other clubs in Switzerla ...
,
Benjamin Huggel Benjamin "Beni" Huggel (born 7 July 1977) is a Swiss former footballer who played as a midfielder for FC Basel in the Swiss Super League and for Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga. He won a total of twelve titles with Basel, seven League Cha ...
and
Xherdan Shaqiri Xherdan Shaqiri (; born 10 October 1991) is a Swiss professional footballer who plays as a winger for Major League Soccer club Chicago Fire and the Switzerland national team. Shaqiri began his career at FC Basel, winning honours including t ...
each added another goal. The match ended with Basel winning 5–1 on the night and 8–2 on aggregate.


Group stage

The victory in the play-offs meant that Basel qualified for the Europa League group stage. The group stage featured the 38 winners of the play-off round and the 10 losing sides of the Champions League play-off round. The draw for the group stage was held in
Monaco Monaco (; ), officially the Principality of Monaco (french: Principauté de Monaco; Ligurian: ; oc, Principat de Mónegue), is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Italian region of Lig ...
on 28 August 2009. The matches in group stage took place between 17 September and 17 December 2009. FCB were then drawn into Group E alongside
A.S. Roma ' (''Rome Sport Association''), commonly referred to as Roma (), is a professional football club based in Rome, Italy. Founded by a merger in 1927, Roma has participated in the top tier of Italian football for all of its existence, except for ...
(
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
),
Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...
(
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
) and CSKA Sofia (
Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...
). ;Roma (17 September 2009) Basel started in the group with a home game against
Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: Places Australia * Roma, Queensland, a town ** Roma Airport ** Roma Courthouse ** Electoral district of Roma, defunct ** Town of Roma, defunct town, now part of the Maranoa Regional Council *Roma Street, Brisbane, a ...
. It was a cloudy day and, in the evening, it was warm with about 18 °C, but the pitch in the
St. Jakob-Park St. Jakob-Park () is a Swiss sports stadium in Basel. It is the largest football venue in Switzerland and home to FC Basel. "Joggeli", as the venue is nicknamed by the locals, was originally built with a capacity of 33,433 seats. The capacity w ...
was damp. Basel started fast into the game, in 11th minute
Carlitos Carlitos is a Spanish or Portuguese nickname (usually a diminutive for Carlos). It may refer to: Persons * Carlitos (footballer, born 1921) (1921–2001), former Brazilian football striker * Carlitos (footballer, born 1976), full name Carlos Do ...
shot the hosts into the lead. A loose ball fell in front of Cabral's feet and he immediately passed it to Carlitos, who, with a first-time drive from about 30 metres found the bottom corner of the goal. Then an intense period of pressure from the Roma team followed. Francesco Totti sent a dipping free-kick which hit the top of the crossbar and
John Arne Riise John Arne Semundseth Riise (born 24 September 1980) is a Norwegian professional football manager and former player who played as a left back and a left midfielder. He is currently the manager of Toppserien club Avaldsnes. With 110 caps, Riise is ...
's long-range drive was deflected wide.
Alexander Frei Alexander Frei or Alex Frei (born 15 July 1979) is a Swiss professional football coach and a former player who played as a forward. He is currently the manager of Basel. He began his career at Basel, going on to various other clubs in Switzerla ...
nearly doubled the hosts' lead, but he was stopped by a good challenge from
Philippe Mexès Philippe Mexès (; born 30 March 1982) is a French former professional Association football, footballer who played as a centre back. He represented AJ Auxerre, Auxerre, A.S. Roma, Roma and A.C. Milan, AC Milan at club level during a career that ...
. Soon after
Marco Streller Marco Streller (born 18 June 1981) is a Swiss former footballer who played as a striker and is best known for his years with FC Basel and the Switzerland national team. He was the sporting director of FC Basel from June 2017 until June 2019. Sin ...
had a powerful header tipped over the bar, following a good move down the right flank. In the 72nd minute Streller then hit the crossbar with a very good volley. A late breakaway by substitute
Federico Almerares Federico Almerares (born 2 May 1985 in Mar del Plata, Buenos Aires Province) is an Argentina, Argentine former football (soccer), footballer who played as Forward (association football), striker or centre forward. Almerares came through the ran ...
earned Basel an impressive victory and the three points, just three minutes from time, as he was sent clear by Frei and calmly rounded
Júlio Sérgio Júlio Sérgio Bertagnoli (born 8 November 1978) is a Brazilian association football, football manager and former player who played as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper. He is the current assistant manager of Coritiba Foot Ball Clu ...
to score and make it a 2–0 win. ;Fulham (1 October 2009) Matchday 2 in the group stage saw Basel make their first ever visit to
Craven Cottage Craven Cottage is a football ground in Fulham, West London, England, which has been the home of Fulham F.C. since 1896.According to the club'official website The ground's capacity is 22,384; the record attendance is 49,335, for a game against M ...
and some 16,000 supporters were in the stadium to see a tight encounter between
Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...
and the visitors. Referee was Greman Michael Weiner, it was a cloudy evening and the pitch was dry. Basel started well and were in charge of the game, as in the 13th minute as their winger
Behrang Safari Behrang Safari ( fa, بهرنگ صفری, ; born 9 February 1985) is a Swedish former professional footballer who played as a defender. Starting off his professional career with Malmö FF in 2004, he went on to represent FC Basel and RSC Anderl ...
out ran Fulham defender Stephen Kelly wide on the touchline and he played an exact pass to
Alexander Frei Alexander Frei or Alex Frei (born 15 July 1979) is a Swiss professional football coach and a former player who played as a forward. He is currently the manager of Basel. He began his career at Basel, going on to various other clubs in Switzerla ...
, but the striker placed his shot the wrong side of the post. Basel midfield
Benjamin Huggel Benjamin "Beni" Huggel (born 7 July 1977) is a Swiss former footballer who played as a midfielder for FC Basel in the Swiss Super League and for Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga. He won a total of twelve titles with Basel, seven League Cha ...
hooked a half-volley over the bar after 20 minutes and he was guilty of another miss four minutes later, after
Marco Streller Marco Streller (born 18 June 1981) is a Swiss former footballer who played as a striker and is best known for his years with FC Basel and the Switzerland national team. He was the sporting director of FC Basel from June 2017 until June 2019. Sin ...
had headed on a ball to leave him with only keeper Mark Schwarzer to beat. The visitors had much the better first period. Fulhaim manager
Roy Hodgson Roy Hodgson (born 9 August 1947) is a former English football manager and player. He managed 22 different teams in eight countries, beginning in Sweden with Halmstads BK in the 1976 season. He later guided the Switzerland national team to th ...
must have said harsh words to his team because the team played better after the break. Basel still played somewhat better, but Fulham captain Danny Murphy struck with a low drive in the 57th minute and this remained the only goal of the game, as his side then won 1–0 to climb to the top of Group table. ;CSKA Sofia (22 October 2009) Basel's third match in the group stage took place on 22 October and was an away game against CSKA Sofia. CSKA Sofia played their home group matches at Vasil Levski National Stadium as their
Balgarska Armiya Stadium Stadion Balgarska Armia ( bg, Стадион „Българска Армия“, en, 'Balgarska Armia Stadium', ) is the club stadium of the Bulgarian football club CSKA Sofia. It's situated in the Borisova gradina in the centre of Sofia. The st ...
did not meet UEFA criteria. Referee was
Jorge Sousa Manuel Jorge Neves Moreira de Sousa (; born 18 June 1975) is a Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance l ...
from Portugal, the weather was cloudy and cool, the pitch was soft and there were 25,000 spectators. Basel started slowly, but were in charge of the game and were always looking dangerous whenever they pushed forward. Basel took the lead in the 20th-minute, as Marco Streller let a long ball bounce past him to
Alexander Frei Alexander Frei or Alex Frei (born 15 July 1979) is a Swiss professional football coach and a former player who played as a forward. He is currently the manager of Basel. He began his career at Basel, going on to various other clubs in Switzerla ...
, who was able to chest it down and place his shot beyond keeper Ivan Karadzhov who was rushing towards him. Frei could have scored his second goal as he burst through between two defenders in the 39th minute, but he shot wide. Basel kept up their momentum, but CSKA didn't bring much to stand at the other end. After the half time break Frei had another chance, only a last gasp tackle by substitute
Aleksandar Branekov Aleksandar Branekov ( bg, Александър Бранеков; born 31 May 1987) is a former Bulgarian professional association football, footballer who played as a centre back. Career Branekov is a product of the PFC CSKA Sofia, CSKA Sofia Aca ...
denied him on the hour. In the 63rd minute he did manage his second goal as he rose highest to head home a cross that came from the right from
Carlitos Carlitos is a Spanish or Portuguese nickname (usually a diminutive for Carlos). It may refer to: Persons * Carlitos (footballer, born 1921) (1921–2001), former Brazilian football striker * Carlitos (footballer, born 1976), full name Carlos Do ...
. Keeper Karadzhov then managed to parry a further another Frei effort following a goalmouth hustle. Basel came home with a 2–0 victory. ;CSKA Sofia (5 November 2009) Matchday four was the return game against the Bulgarians and this was played two weeks later in
St. Jakob-Park St. Jakob-Park () is a Swiss sports stadium in Basel. It is the largest football venue in Switzerland and home to FC Basel. "Joggeli", as the venue is nicknamed by the locals, was originally built with a capacity of 33,433 seats. The capacity w ...
with 15,255 spectators. Referee was Oleh Oriekhov from the
Football Federation of Ukraine The Ukrainian Association of Football (UAF) ( uk, Українська асоціяція футболу, Ukrayins'ka Asotsiyatsiya Futbolu) is the governing body of football in Ukraine. Before 2019 it was known as the Football Federation of Ukra ...
, the weather was cloudy and the pitch was soft. Basel head coach
Thorsten Fink Thorsten Fink (born 29 October 1967) is a German football coach and a former footballer, currently works as manager of Riga FC. Career Fink began his career with Borussia Dortmund's reserve squad before moving to SG Wattenscheid 09, where he hel ...
was forced to change his team because of injuries to goalkeeper
Franco Costanzo Franco Costanzo Geymonat (born 5 September 1980) is a former Argentine football goalkeeper who last played for Chilean club Universidad Católica of the Primera División. He has earned the reputation of being an eccentric goalkeeper by ofte ...
, defender David Abraham and midfielders
Carlitos Carlitos is a Spanish or Portuguese nickname (usually a diminutive for Carlos). It may refer to: Persons * Carlitos (footballer, born 1921) (1921–2001), former Brazilian football striker * Carlitos (footballer, born 1976), full name Carlos Do ...
and Antônio da Silva. The visitors were the team playing better during the first half-hour and Basel were forced to defend in the early stages, but the game changed dramatically in just six minutes. After 35 minutes
Marcos Gelabert Marcos Agustín Gelabert (born 16 September 1981, in General Pico, La Pampa) is an Argentine footballer who plays for Gimnasia Mendoza. His position is defensive midfielder. Career Gelabert started his career at Estudiantes de La Plata in the ...
opened the score, as
Valentin Stocker Valentin Stocker (born 12 April 1989) is a Swiss former professional footballer who played as a left midfielder. He has played for the Switzerland national team. Club career Basel Born in Lucerne, Stocker began his youth career with SC Kri ...
laid the ball into his path and his 20-metre shot was slightly deflected as it made its way into the goal, beyond the reach of keeper Zdravko Chavdarov. Six minutes later Bulgarian defender
Aleksandar Branekov Aleksandar Branekov ( bg, Александър Бранеков; born 31 May 1987) is a former Bulgarian professional association football, footballer who played as a centre back. Career Branekov is a product of the PFC CSKA Sofia, CSKA Sofia Aca ...
fouled
Alexander Frei Alexander Frei or Alex Frei (born 15 July 1979) is a Swiss professional football coach and a former player who played as a forward. He is currently the manager of Basel. He began his career at Basel, going on to various other clubs in Switzerla ...
in the penalty area and he converted the spot-kick himself. In the 61st minute CSKA came back into the match as
Marquinhos Marcos Aoás Corrêa (born 14 May 1994), known as Marquinhos, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a defender for Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain, which he captains, and the Brazil national team. Mainly a centre-back, he can ...
's corner flew over all the central players and found Todor Yanchev, who was able to control the ball with his chest and to score with a looping shot beyond goalkeeper Massimo Colomba. However the CSKA revival didn't last long, because only six minutes later
Benjamin Huggel Benjamin "Beni" Huggel (born 7 July 1977) is a Swiss former footballer who played as a midfielder for FC Basel in the Swiss Super League and for Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga. He won a total of twelve titles with Basel, seven League Cha ...
's long pass over flew the defence and came to Frei, who moved neatly past Chavdarov and push the ball into the empty net. Frei struck twice against CSKA for the second game running. This was the goal to 3–1 and this score remained until the end. ;Roma (3 December 2009) The return game against
Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: Places Australia * Roma, Queensland, a town ** Roma Airport ** Roma Courthouse ** Electoral district of Roma, defunct ** Town of Roma, defunct town, now part of the Maranoa Regional Council *Roma Street, Brisbane, a ...
on matchday five was played in
Stadio Olimpico The Stadio Olimpico (English: ''Olympic Stadium'') is the largest sports facility in Rome, Italy, seating over 70,000 spectators. It is located within the Foro Italico sports complex, north of the city. The structure is owned by the Italian Na ...
in front of 27,000 spectators. Basel began well, the team was daring and venturesome, the Italians started somewhat slow. Basel took a deserved lead after 18 minutes as a left-wing cross from
Valentin Stocker Valentin Stocker (born 12 April 1989) is a Swiss former professional footballer who played as a left midfielder. He has played for the Switzerland national team. Club career Basel Born in Lucerne, Stocker began his youth career with SC Kri ...
to the near post was headed home by Basel captain
Benjamin Huggel Benjamin "Beni" Huggel (born 7 July 1977) is a Swiss former footballer who played as a midfielder for FC Basel in the Swiss Super League and for Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga. He won a total of twelve titles with Basel, seven League Cha ...
. Roma were then forced to increase their pressure and they did,
Simone Perrotta Simone Perrotta (; born 17 September 1977) is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. Throughout his career, he stood out for his work-rate, energy, and box-to-box play as a ball-winner in the midfield area. After i ...
had two near misses within four minutes. Then
Cicinho Cícero João de Cézare (born 24 June 1980), nicknamed Cicinho (), is a Brazilian retired professional footballer who played as a right back. He had his breakthrough at São Paulo, where he was named in the 2005 Bola de Prata as the team won ...
's cross flew high into the penalty area,
Marcos Gelabert Marcos Agustín Gelabert (born 16 September 1981, in General Pico, La Pampa) is an Argentine footballer who plays for Gimnasia Mendoza. His position is defensive midfielder. Career Gelabert started his career at Estudiantes de La Plata in the ...
pulled back Francesco Totti and referee
Tony Chapron Tony Chapron (born 23 April 1972) is a French former football referee. Born in Flers, Orne, Chapron took up refereeing in 1996 in conjunction with his job as an educational advisor. He became a full-time referee in 1998 and an international re ...
from the
French Football Federation The French Football Federation ( FFF; french: Fédération Française de Football) is the governing body of football in France. It also includes the overseas departments ( Guadeloupe, French Guiana, Martinique, Mayotte and Réunion), the over ...
whistled for a spot-kick. Totti himself converted the penalty beyond keeper
Stefan Wessels Stefan Wessels (born 28 February 1979) is a German former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Club career Bayern Munich Wessels was a youth team player at Bayern Munich, who progressed through the reserve team and broke into th ...
's left hand. Basel started into the second half as they had at the beginning of the game, acting dangerously. Ten minutes after the break keeper
Júlio Sérgio Júlio Sérgio Bertagnoli (born 8 November 1978) is a Brazilian association football, football manager and former player who played as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper. He is the current assistant manager of Coritiba Foot Ball Clu ...
did well to tip an
Alexander Frei Alexander Frei or Alex Frei (born 15 July 1979) is a Swiss professional football coach and a former player who played as a forward. He is currently the manager of Basel. He began his career at Basel, going on to various other clubs in Switzerla ...
effort over the top. Roma then increased their pressure again and a series of first-time passes ended with Daniele De Rossi playing the ball behind the Basel back line to Mirko Vučinić and his left-footed shot put his team into the lead. During the closing stages
Marco Streller Marco Streller (born 18 June 1981) is a Swiss former footballer who played as a striker and is best known for his years with FC Basel and the Switzerland national team. He was the sporting director of FC Basel from June 2017 until June 2019. Sin ...
forced keeper Sérgio to make a save with his feet and
Alexander Frei Alexander Frei or Alex Frei (born 15 July 1979) is a Swiss professional football coach and a former player who played as a forward. He is currently the manager of Basel. He began his career at Basel, going on to various other clubs in Switzerla ...
hit the cross-bar but the visitors were unable to equalise. The game ended 2–1 for Roma, leaving Basel's fate hinging on the final match against Fulham. ;Fulham (16 December 2009) Matchday six, the return game against
Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...
, was played in the
St. Jakob-Park St. Jakob-Park () is a Swiss sports stadium in Basel. It is the largest football venue in Switzerland and home to FC Basel. "Joggeli", as the venue is nicknamed by the locals, was originally built with a capacity of 33,433 seats. The capacity w ...
in front of 20,063 spectators. The pitch was wet after rain, this turned to snow and the temperature dropped to freezing point. The outcome of this group was far from being decided, Roma were group leaders with ten points, Basel were second with nine points and Fulham had eight points. Roma were already qualified for the knock-out stage and one of the two teams playing here were to advance as well, Basel needed not to lose. The match started level on terms, neither side playing better than the other, but neither creating many good chances. However,
Bobby Zamora Robert Lester Zamora (born 16 January 1981) is an English former professional footballer who played as a forward. Zamora began his career at Football League club Bristol Rovers, but was soon signed by Brighton & Hove Albion, where he found first ...
scored twice in three minutes just before half-time to put the Premier League side two in front at the break. Zamora nearly completed his hat-trick just following the beak, but reserve keeper Massimo Colomba stretched and saved his free-kick.
Alexander Frei Alexander Frei or Alex Frei (born 15 July 1979) is a Swiss professional football coach and a former player who played as a forward. He is currently the manager of Basel. He began his career at Basel, going on to various other clubs in Switzerla ...
pulled one back with a second-half penalty in the 64th minute following a handball, but then in the 77th minute
Zoltán Gera Zoltán Gera (; born 22 April 1979) is a Hungarian former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. He played for Fulham, Pécsi Mecsek and Harkány SE, as well as enjoying two spells at Ferencváros and West Bromwich Alb ...
restored the visitors two-goal lead. However, the visitors' nerves were fraying during the closing stages and in the 87th minute
Marco Streller Marco Streller (born 18 June 1981) is a Swiss former footballer who played as a striker and is best known for his years with FC Basel and the Switzerland national team. He was the sporting director of FC Basel from June 2017 until June 2019. Sin ...
headed home. This gave Basel hope of a draw and that would have sent them through to the next round, Fulham were happy that they survived the nerve-wracking last few minutes. ;Conclusion In a close game, the English club had narrowly won 3–2, sending Basel out of the competition with third place in the Group Table. This meant that Basel's aim for the European competition was not quite achieved, their hopes had been to advance to the
knock-out stage A knockout (abbreviated to KO or K.O.) is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, muay thai, mixed martial arts, karate, some forms of taekwondo and other sports involving striking ...
. Group winners
A.S. Roma ' (''Rome Sport Association''), commonly referred to as Roma (), is a professional football club based in Rome, Italy. Founded by a merger in 1927, Roma has participated in the top tier of Italian football for all of its existence, except for ...
were eliminated in the next round, being defeated twice 3–2 by
Panathinaikos Panathinaikos Athlitikos Omilos ( el, Παναθηναϊκός Αθλητικός Όμιλος, literally in English: "Panathenaic Athletic Club" or Panathinaikos A.C.), also known simply as Panathinaikós , is a major Greek multi-sport club ba ...
.
Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...
advanced to the
final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
in the HSH Nordbank Arenain
Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...
but were defeated 2–1 after extra time by
Atlético Madrid Club Atlético de Madrid, Sociedad Anónima Deportiva, S.A.D. (; meaning "Athletic Club of Madrid"), known simply as Atleti in the Spanish-speaking world and commonly referred to at international level as Atlético Madrid, is a Spanish profess ...
.


Club


FC Basel Holding AG

The FC Basel Holding AG (Holding) owns 75% of the club FC Basel (FC Basel 1893 AG) and the other 25% is owned by the club members. Chairwoman of the Holding was Gisela Oeri. She owned 91.96% of the shares. The other 8,04% of the shares were owned by a group of investors, these being Manor AG, J. Safra Sarasin, Novasearch AG, MCH Group AG and Weitnauer Holding AG. As chairwoman of the holding Ms Oeri was also chairwoman of the club.


Club management

The club's board of directors remained in the same constellation as in the previous season. One of the most important occurrences during the year 2010 was the formation of the ''Nachwuchs Campus Basel'', to English foundation
Youth Campus Basel The Stiftung Nachwuchs Campus Basel, in English foundation Youth Campus Basel, was brought to life by Gigi Oeri in 2010, with the aim of continuously developing FC Basel’s youth division on a long-term basis. The foundation is registered with ...
. This was founded by then FCB chairwoman Gigi Oeri with the aim of promoting youth football in Basel on a sustainable basis. The purpose of the foundation is the integral training and promotion of young football talents in football, schooling, education and personality. The first managing director of the foundation was Benno Kaiser and he was also in the club's board of directors. Since its formation, the foundation owns the accommodation centre which provides space for youth players and offers them supervised accommodation and nutrition. The foundation was to aid in the administration of the club's youth department. The foundation was to build, later to run and maintain the campus grounds.


Team management


Kit

, ,


Players


First team

''As of 7 October 2009, accounting for official transfers:Football.ch – Transfers
/ref>''


Multiple Nationality

* 1
Franco Costanzo Franco Costanzo Geymonat (born 5 September 1980) is a former Argentine football goalkeeper who last played for Chilean club Universidad Católica of the Primera División. He has earned the reputation of being an eccentric goalkeeper by ofte ...
* 3 Sabri Boumelaha * 11 Scott Chipperfield * 13
Daniel Unal Daniel Unal (born 18 January 1990, in Locarno) is a Swiss former footballer of Aramean origin who played as a midfielder. Club career Unal played his youth football with FC Locarno and in 2005 he moved to AC Bellinzona. In 2006 he advanced to t ...
* 15
Federico Almerares Federico Almerares (born 2 May 1985 in Mar del Plata, Buenos Aires Province) is an Argentina, Argentine former football (soccer), footballer who played as Forward (association football), striker or centre forward. Almerares came through the ran ...
* 17
Xherdan Shaqiri Xherdan Shaqiri (; born 10 October 1991) is a Swiss professional footballer who plays as a winger for Major League Soccer club Chicago Fire and the Switzerland national team. Shaqiri began his career at FC Basel, winning honours including t ...
* 20
Behrang Safari Behrang Safari ( fa, بهرنگ صفری, ; born 9 February 1985) is a Swedish former professional footballer who played as a defender. Starting off his professional career with Malmö FF in 2004, he went on to represent FC Basel and RSC Anderl ...
* 23 Massimo Colomba * 24 Cabral * 28
Beg Ferati Beg Ferati (born 10 November 1986) is a Swiss former professional footballer who played as a centre-back. Club career Born in Pristina, Ferati moved with his family to Pratteln, Switzerland, while he was still a child. He started his children's ...
* 33
Serkan Şahin Serkan Şahin (born 15 February 1988) is a Turkish former footballer who played mainly as a defender, but also as defensive midfielder. Career Şahin began his children's football with local club FC Bubendorf, but soon moved to the youth dep ...


2009–10 Summer transfers


In


Out


Out on loan


Competitions


Overall

Basel participated in the following major competitions: the
Swiss Super League The Swiss Super League (known as the Credit Suisse Super League for sponsorship reasons) is a Swiss professional league in the top tier of the Swiss football league system and has been played in its current format since the 2003–04 season ...
, the
Swiss Cup The Swiss Cup (; ; ; ) is a football cup tournament that has been organised annually since 1925–26 by the Swiss Football Association. Since 1999 the winner earns the chance to qualify for the UEFA Europa League or the UEFA Europa Conference L ...
and the
UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. It ...
.


Results and fixtures


Friendlies


Pre- and mid-season friendlies


Winter Break and mid-season friendlies


Swiss Super League


First half of season


Second half of season


League table


Swiss Cup

''For more information, see
2009–10 Swiss Cup The 2009–10 Swiss Cup was the 85th season of Switzerland's annual football cup competition. It began on 17 September with the first game of Round 1 and ended on 9 May 2010 with the Final held at St. Jakob-Park, Basel. The competition was won by F ...
''


Swiss Cup 2009–10


UEFA Europa League


Qualifying rounds


=Second qualifying round

= ''Basel won 7–1 on aggregate.''


=Third qualifying round

= ''Basel won 5–3 on aggregate.''


=Play-off round

= ''Basel won 8–2 on aggregate.''


Group stage, group E

;Notes


Statistics in the 2009–10 Season


League Goalscorers/Assists

''Updated to games played 16 May 2010''


Swiss Cup Goalscorers/Assists

''Updated to games played 9 May 2010''


European Goalscorers/Assist

''Updated to games played 16 December 2009''


Total Goalscorers/Assists

''Updated to games played 16 May 2010''


References


Sources

* Rotblau: Jahrbuch Saison 2015/2016. Publisher: FC Basel Marketing AG. * Rotblau: Jahrbuch Saison 2017/2018. Publisher: FC Basel Marketing AG. * Die ersten 125 Jahre / 2018. Publisher: Josef Zindel im Friedrich Reinhardt Verlag, Basel.
Season 2009–10 at "Basler Fussballarchiv” homepage



External links


Official site

football.ch
{{DEFAULTSORT:2009-10 FC Basel season 2009-2010
Basel , french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese , neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS ...
2009-10